VVPAT: Oppn to file review petition on SC verdict, says Congress

New Delhi (India) Apr 13 (ANI): Congress parliamentarian and Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Saturday said that the petitioners in the VVPAT verification matter will file a review petition to push for their initial demand for random checking of 50 per cent of the Electoral Voting Machines (EVMs).
“The petitioners would file a review petition next week and the prayer would be for increasing the number of VVPAT matching per constituency. The initial demand would be for verification of 50 per cent of EVMs,” Singhvi told ANI.
This comes after the Supreme Court on April 8 ordered the Election Commission (EC) to increase the VVPAT count of one randomly selected electronic voting machine per Assembly constituency to five in the Lok Sabha polls.
Singhvi added that parties are saying that the EC’s argument of delay is not logical. “When there was a ballot counting it used to take two days. If it takes time, we will build confidence in the minds of the people. The opposition parties are not satisfied with the Supreme Court’s ruling,” Singhvi said further.
In its April 8 order, a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said, "Increasing the VVPAT verification from one EVM per constituency to five is to ensure the greatest degree of accuracy, satisfaction in the election process and not only political parties but the poor should be satisfied."
The court’s order came on a petition filed by 21 parties, led by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, seeking random count of Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) of at least 50 per cent of the EVMs per Assembly segment in a Lok Sabha seat before the declaration of result.
After the verdict of the apex court, the Congress urged the Supreme Court to reconsider its instruction to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to increase the random verification of VVPAT slips.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala on Monday said: “We are not satisfied with five per booth verification of VVPAT slips in one assembly constituency. If VVPAT slips are not verified, then what was the point in spending Rs 18,00,00,000.”
“We have demanded the verification of 50 per cent VVPAT slips. The order of the Supreme Court is not reasonable. The apex court must reconsider its decision,” said Surjewala. (ANI)