The Election Commission of India (ECI) informed the Delhi High Court that CCTV footage from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Delhi has been destroyed under new data retention rules, sparking concerns over transparency and evidence preservation.
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NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has informed the Delhi High Court that the CCTV and video recordings from polling stations in Delhi during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections have been destroyed in accordance with its revised data retention guidelines issued on May 30, 2025.
The revelation came during the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Advocate Mehmood Pracha, who had sought the preservation of all CCTV and video footage related to the election process.
Representing the poll body, Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi told the court that
“The footage sought by the petitioner is no longer available with the District Election Officers (DEOs) and has already been destroyed.”
Sethi informed the court that the ECI had issued fresh instructions on May 30, 2025, revising its earlier guidelines from September 6, 2024.
According to the ECI’s updated guidelines, data such as CCTV visuals, webcasting content, and photographs from polling stations are required to be retained only for 45 days, unless a petition contesting the election results is filed within that period.
“…as of today, the data as sought by the petitioner, i.e., the video / CCTV footage pertaining to the Lok Sabha Elections, 2024, is no longer in the custody of the DEOs in Delhi and already stands destroyed,”
the court noted in its order.
The ECI’s counsel further explained that the revised instructions were designed to prevent misuse of polling visuals on social media by individuals not involved in the official electoral process.
Advocate Mehmood Pracha, however, argued that since his PIL was already pending before the Delhi High Court, the Commission was legally obligated to preserve the video footage.
He also cited provisions from the ‘Handbook for Returning Officers, 2023’, which states that all election-related recordings must be retained if any complaint, litigation, or inquiry related to the election process is ongoing.
Pracha accused the ECI of issuing the May 30 guidelines “solely to defeat the pending petition”, calling the destruction of the footage an attempt to obstruct transparency in the electoral process.
Taking note of the ECI’s submission and the petitioner’s objections, Justice Mini Pushkarna said:
“Noting the aforesaid, no orders can be passed by this Court in the present application, for the time being. Accordingly, the present application is disposed of.”
Justice Pushkarna declined to issue any interim order regarding the matter. The court scheduled the next hearing for February 13, 2026.
