EVM integrity unquestionable, simultaneous polls good only in theory: Ex-CEC

With the 2019 Lok Sabha elections just round the corner, Every Vote Counts: The Story of India's Elections, a book by Navin Chawla, former chief election commissioner, attempts to decode the largest electoral exercise in the world—the Indian Parliament elections. In an interview with THE WEEK, Chawla shared his experiences of having captained the landmark elections of 2009 and of key state assemblies during his stint as the CEC.

Speaking to THE WEEK, Chawla explained why apprehensions over the electronic voting machines were both misplaced and groundless. Chawla shared his thoughts on money and muscle power and election malpractices that go unpunished due to lacunae in law and political parties' choice of candidates with criminal antecedents.

Are you personally satisfied with the integrity of the electronic voting machine?

It is not just me or the Election Commission, but all the courts of law that are satisfied with the integrity of the EVM. It is unquestionable now, it was so even in 2009.

Do you think the ongoing EVM controversy is justified?

After the 2009 Parliament elections, I went to France on a vacation. But two days later, the EVM story broke and I flew back to Delhi. For three weeks, I analysed the EVM. We called in every technical expert. We assembled 100 machines including 10 from Karnataka and invited anyone to hack it. To maintain transparency, video cameras were installed to record the proceedings, which would be submitted to any court that asked for it.

After this, Subramanian Swamy moved the Delhi High Court, questioning the expertise of the Election Commission and alleging the chip in the EVM could be manipulated to rig the elections to favour a candidate. EVMs are manufactured by two PSUs—BEL and ECIL—and are totally tamper-proof. The manufacturers were adamant not to allow the machines to be taken away for examination as they suspected attempts at reverse engineering would lead to copying the internal design and measurements and compromise the machine forever.

During the court hearings, the petitioner proposed the verifiable paper trial. Though the commission was convinced with the machine's integrity, it was appreciative of the fact that voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) could make the process fair and transparent. In 2017 too, the Election Commission had invited people and political parties who wished to challenge the EVM. But none could hack it. More recently, when an invitation for a hackathon was extended, representatives from only two political parties turned up.

Is the ballot paper a better option especially when the integrity of EVMs is being questioned?

I favour the EVM for a fact that it has helped declare the election results within a few hours into counting. As many as 700 million votes are being counted effortlessly. It has also reduced the rate of error, which was rampant in ballot paper (stamping). There used to be many invalid votes and the parties demanded recounting. Parties have forgotten those days of dispute. We have come a long way.

EVMs are recognised in many countries today. Bhutan has used EVMs in three elections, and each time a different party has come to power.

Has the voter-verifiable paper audit trail resolved the issue?

The political parties now say they want the VVPAT display time to be enhanced from the current 7 seconds. The Election Commission will tally a percentage of EVMs with paper slips generated by VVPAT bearing the candidate's name and party symbol. The parties want to see a bigger sample where EVMs are tallied with the paper slip. The Election Commission has to take a call on that.

The new-generation EVMs used in 1,800 polling stations in Karnataka during the May 2018 assembly polls have advanced features. These EVMs not only accommodate 384 candidates against the earlier 16, but shut down automatically the moment any attempts to open the machine or alter a component are made.

'Casting the vote through EVM is not a secret ballot'. What are your thoughts on this argument?

We have often read about politicians confronting or harassing a voter for not voting for him. I, like many others in the Election Commission, favour the use of totaliser, which counts the votes cast across 14 polling stations together. That way you cannot single out or identify the votes cast in any particular polling booth. But the subsequent governments have not been favouring this reform.

There is a view that NOTA is being used as a tool by parties to impact poll outcomes...

NOTA was devised as the voice of conscientious objectors. But the electoral acts did not envisage what happens if the number of NOTA votes exceeds the votes gained by the candidate. Will it call for a re-election, and will the same candidates be again allowed to contest the re-election are some of the issues that need clarity.

If the NOTA exceeds a certain limit, it needs to be examined. The electoral acts had never envisaged this as they only speak for the voter. Both the Election Commission and government should think this through and bring about a legislative change. It is also a warning for the political parties to introspect and field better candidates.

Criminals have won elections. Is it a failure of the electoral system?

Election is a fair umpire. But the players are coming from diverse backgrounds. Some have criminal antecedents, too. In fact, the Supreme Court made it compulsory for the candidates to file affidavits declaring their educational qualification, assets and criminal antecedents. But the fact is 30 per cent of the sitting MPs are tainted and have cases of attempted murder, rape and dacoity against them. A person in jail can contest and win the elections, too.

For instance, how is it that today, somebody who is a fugitive of India and facing extradition and who was an owner of an airline, but did not pay lot of his employees, was made a member of the parliamentary committee on civil aviation? When I asked a top official whether it was not a conflict of interest, he told me many MPs came to him and said it was not conflict of interest and he had the “domain expertise”. It is alarming because it is a cosy club in Parliament, where no parliamentarian complains about a colleague's criminal record.

Can India afford to hold simultaneous elections?

No. It is true that the Election Commission is always busy with elections, and the lengthy imposition of model code of conduct in the states is hindering governance. But simultaneous elections seem good only in theory as it requires a drastic upgrade of election management.

Moreover, holding simultaneous elections is not possible as it would require a whole lot of constitutional amendments. When the state governments started losing confidence of the house and the governments fell, President's rule was imposed for six months, which could be extended to another six months by the Centre. But what happens if Central government collapses before the end of its tenure? Are we going to have another general election? Can the president take a call on what happens when the Central government collapses?

What is the best part about Indian elections?

Unlike many countries where election results are contested and protests and litigation in courts follow, in India, the poll results have always been accepted by all the political parties. Election in India is the largest electoral exercise. So, I have dedicated my book to the true heroes of the Indian election story—the thousands of dedicated polling officials including the teachers, revenue staff and police officials who walk the extra mile to enable the country to vote.