Supreme Court says time-stamping on VVPAT slips falls under Election Commission’s domain

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that the issue of printing the precise time of voting on VVPAT slips is a technical matter that falls within the domain of the Election Commission of India.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi disposed of a public interest litigation seeking directions to modify Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) guidelines to include time-stamping on every slip.

The court observed that while the petition concerns electoral integrity and transparency, the feasibility of implementing such a system is a technical issue best examined by the Election Commission.

“It seems that the issue raised by the petitioner concerns electoral integrity. However, the prayer sought by the petitioner, namely, whether such a measure is feasible, is a technical issue falling within the domain of the EC,” the bench stated.

The Supreme Court directed its registry to forward the plea to the Election Commission for consideration.

The petitioner had argued that adding precise voting time details on VVPAT slips would improve transparency, auditability and verifiability of the electoral process.

VVPAT machines are attached to Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and allow voters to verify that their vote has been cast correctly by displaying a paper slip for a few seconds before it drops into a sealed box.

The Election Commission is now expected to examine the proposal and decide whether such a modification is technically and operationally feasible.