The Central Information Commission (CIC) issued an order to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to release information regarding Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs).
NEW DELHI: Last Month (28th March): The Central Information Commission (CIC) issued an order directing the Election Commission of India (ECI) to disclose information pertaining to a representation filed by a group of eminent citizens. The representation had raised concerns about the credibility of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines, as well as the compliance of EVMs with democratic principles.
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The verdict came following a second appeal filed by retired civil servant MG Devasahayam, who had initially filed a Right to Information (RTI) application in November 2022.
Chief Information Commissioner Heeralal Samariya determined that the actions of the electoral body egregiously breached the RTI Act and requested written explanations from the involved officers.
“The Commission has reviewed the case documents and the arguments presented during the hearing, and is highly dissatisfied with the former PIO’s failure to respond to the RTI Application within the prescribed period as mandated by the RTI Act. Consequently, the Commission instructs the former PIO, via the current PIO, to provide a written explanation for this significant breach of the RTI provisions,” the CIC declared in its verdict on March 28.
RTI activist Amrita Johri represented the appellant, retired civil servant MG Devasahayam, during the proceedings. The Election Commission of India was represented by Under-Secretary Rakesh Kumar and Assistant Section Officer Satish Kumar.
After MG Devasahayam did not receive a response to his RTI application within the stipulated 30-day period, he proceeded to file a first appeal, which also went unanswered. Subsequently, in March of the following year, Devasahayam approached the CIC seeking intervention.
The RTI application submitted by Devasahayam sought specific information regarding the representation submitted to the ECI by the group of eminent citizens. The information requested included:
- Names and designations of individuals to whom the representation was forwarded or shared.
- Names of public authorities to whom the representation was forwarded or shared.
- Details of any meetings held by the ECI to discuss the issues raised in the representation, including dates, names and designations of attendees, and copies of meeting minutes.
- Copies of all correspondence and communication related to the representation.
- Copies of all file notings related to the representation.
- A request to inspect all information and records held by the ECI pertaining to the action taken on the representation, along with a query regarding the date, time, and venue for the inspection.
In response to the second appeal, the ECI initially claimed that the RTI application had not been received. However, during the proceedings, the ECI assured that the requested data would be shared within a month.
The CIC’s order emphasized that the requested information must be disclosed within 30 days, and a compliance report should be submitted to the commission. It also directed the current PIO to ensure that the order is served to the former PIO. Furthermore, the CIC mandated the concerned PIO to carefully examine the RTI application and provide a point-wise reply, free of cost, via speed post.
Case Title: MG Devasahayam vs PIO Election Commission of India
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