1. The document summarizes key issues with India's EVM-based election system, arguing it undermines democracy. It outlines 4 main rules that show EVM elections are not free or fair. 2. The first rule discussed intimidates and prosecutes voters who report incorrect votes displayed on VVPAT machines. The testing method to verify complaints is irrational and will likely result in truthful complaints being falsely dismissed. 3. The second rule contradicts the ECI's own sampling methodology. If samples show EVM counts don't match VVPAT, the ECI doesn't count all VVPATs, abandoning its sampling strategy for confirmation but not for disconfirmation. 4. Only allowing 7

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Press Conference by Chandrashekhar Azad,
@ IWPC New Delhi, 17th April, 3 pm
Why EVM-based election is neither free nor fair
Indian democracy faces an unprecedented crisis, as our free and fair election process is
systemically undermined; and the chances of the elections turning into an intimidating and
unaccountable exercise are before us. Since the country has entered into the first phase of general
elections, the news and the social media are filled with reports of the malfunctioning of EVMs at
unprecedented levels and the complaints about the reliability of the EVM-VVPAT machine.
Several citizens in anguish and despair in front of the camera saying that their votes went to a
different candidate and not to the one they had chosen. Many people who have reported the
wrong VVPAT display to the media have not been willing to give the complaint in writing
because of the illogical and terrifying rules of the Election Commission of India (ECI). FIR has
been filed against the voter who has complained about the wrong VVPAT display. The Election
Commission of India terrifies the voter and makes free elections near to impossible.The
following four rules conclusively show that EVM-VVPAT based election is an antithesis to
democracy.
1. The ECI rule which intimidates and incarcerate the voters who complains about wrong
choice printed in VVPAT

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As per section 49 MA of the Conduct of Election (Amendment) Rules 2013 - in the eventuality
of a voter‟s complaint about a wrong choice printed in the VVPAT slip, the presiding officer
asks the voter to cast a test vote in the same machine in the presence of all polling officials and
representatives of candidates. In the test vote, if it turns out that the VVPAT correctly displays
the choice cast in the machine, the ECI declares the voter‟s complaint as false and files charges
under section IPC 177 where the voter potentially faces prison terms up to six months.
The testing method outlined in the section 49 MA is irrational as it fails to distinguish true and
false complain in objective manner. One of the two possible reasons for the printing of incorrect
choice in VVPAT is the malfunctioning of the EVM-VVPAT unit. Malfunctioning does not
necessarily imply a faulty output at every instance. So, there is no guarantee that the
malfunctioned EVM-VVPAT machine, which shows the incorrect choice during the voting
process would repeat its incorrect outcome in the test vote. The second possible cause for wrong
output on VVPAT slip is hacking or tampering of the EVM. If an EVM-VVPAT unit is
tampered, then the machine, which registered an incorrect choice for the first time, certainly may
not register again incorrectly for the second time. The incorrect choice would be repeated only
randomly as decided by the hacker. Under both scenarios, it is highly likely that a truthful
complaint would be “found” as false and the voter would be prosecuted for participating in the
country‟s fundamental democratic process with courage and honesty.
Free and Fair election process, which is the bedrock of Indian democracy, would be under
serious threat if voters fail to report the false VVPAT display for fear of criminal prosecution in
case the complaint “found” as false by the ECI officials. We suggest the following alternative
way to resolve the VVPAT complaint. Instead of dropping the VVPAT slip directly into a ballot
box, allow it to be taken by voters and after them inspecting it, if the VVPAT printing is correct,

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let the voters themselves drop the slips into the ballot papers. While having full physical access
of VVPAT, voters themselves can correct the serial numbers in the slips if the VVPATs print it
incorrectly.
2. Contradicting their own methodology
Arbitrariness and irrationality are the antitheses of the rule of law and it is scary to know that
they occupy the center stage in the vote counting process. This is clearly exhibited in the ECI
rule 56 D (4) (b) the Conduct of Election (Amendment) Rules, 2013.This clause of the rulebook
deals with the scenario where the sample VVPAT does not tally with the EVM count. The
principle behind the ECI‟s adoption of sampling method is that if EVM counts match with
VVPAT counts in the sample, then they would match in all the polling stations. Similarly, in the
case of mismatch in the sample booths, it would be inferred that they do not match in the polling
stations all over the country.
The implication of mismatch in the sample is that EVM counts in all polling booths are
unreliable as the sample is the representation of the population. The decision of ECI is extremely
disturbing, as it does not count the VVPATs in all polling booths even when there is a
discrepancy between EVM counts and VVPAT counts in the randomly chosen sample. As per
the rule 56 D (4) (b), If VVPAT counts mismatches with the EVM counts in selected polling
booths, then the EVM counts would be discarded only in the booths where the discrepancies are
directly observed. The rule, allows the ECI to choose a particular method for confirmation and
another method for disconfirmation, which is nothing but a display of explicit arbitrariness. The
ECI has conveniently abandoned the sampling strategy when it comes to the issue of
disconfirmation of EVM‟s reliability; while the same strategy has been used to confirm its claim

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that EVMs are reliable. The ECI will look the other way when their chosen methodology implies
that EVMs are unreliable. Arbitrariness and contradictions in the ECI‟s rules and approaches
mark a grotesque new low for the Election Commission.
3. Lack of sufficient time to examine the VVPAT
ECI allows the VVPAT to be displayed only for 7 seconds. Many citizens, who come to polling
stations ignoring their health situation and old age, may find it extremely difficult to see the
VVPAT properly within 7 seconds through transparency window. At a time, when ECI is
determined to send people to jail for false determination on the VVPAT display, it must provide
reasonable time (minimum 21 seconds) to perceive the slips properly for people across all age
and health conditions. The video visuals, which have been recently released conclusively, show
that in some polling stations the VVPAT display time is reduced to three seconds. Such a brazen
illegal activity needs to be resisted and defeated.
4. Proper VVPAT audit
The ECI should count VVPATs of at least 50% of polling booths in order to ensure that election
process is transparent and accountable and to regain the people‟s confidence in the election
process, which is the very purpose of the VVPAT system. Supreme Court‟s intervention to raise
the percentage of sample size from 0.5% to 2% is indeed a welcome gesture, although not
sufficient to safeguard our democracy. Several noted statisticians argue that minimum 30-50%
VVPAT ought be counted in order to attain 99% of confidence level in the reliability of VVPAT
counting. Given that there is no unanimity among the statisticians on the issue of adequate
sample size for the VVPAT counting, it is desirable to choose the highest sample size which is
proposed by the statisticians. Moreover, the only defense the ECI has so far against not

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conforming to any democratic standards in VVPAT audit, are some pragmatic considerations
like the counting process may prolong for a few more days. Those matters that ought to be
subordinated to the democratic principles are being preferred at their cost. More importantly, the
Supreme Court was misled by the ECI in the recent petition for the proper VVPAT counting.
ECI had submitted to the court that „no mismatch has been found in the VVPAT verification so
far‟. Multiple media reports and public documents (see annexures) with specific details which
are verifiable show that the ECI‟s submission is false and that itself is a sufficient ground for the
Supreme Court to review its order in the petition, which asks for the proper VVPAT auditing.
We urge the immediate modification of the above rules of election to ensure voter‟s right for
verification and proper VVPAT auditing.
Organized by
Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch –DASAM
Sanjeev Kumar and Shibi Peter
Mob: 8851313728