ELECTRONIC VOTING MACHINES, VOTER VERIFIABLE PAPER AUDIT TRAILS, AND THE CONSTITUTIONAL IMPERATIVE OF TRANSPARENT ELECTIONS: A CRITICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS

AUTHOR – DINESH PANDI. S* & Ms. EZHILARASI M**

* STUDENT AT VELS INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY & ADVANCED STUDIES (VISTAS)

** ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT SCHOOL OF LAW, VELS INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND ADVANCED STUDIES (VISTAS)

BEST CITATION – DINESH PANDI. S & Ms. EZHILARASI M, ELECTRONIC VOTING MACHINES, VOTER VERIFIABLE PAPER AUDIT TRAILS, AND THE CONSTITUTIONAL IMPERATIVE OF TRANSPARENT ELECTIONS: A CRITICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (7) OF 2026, PG. 394-402, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

Abstract

India’s legal framework governing electronic voting—centred on Section 61A of the Representation of the People Act 1951 and the Conduct of Elections Rules 1961—has never been subjected to the comprehensive constitutional scrutiny that its democratic significance demands. This article critically examines the systemic legal deficiencies that have rendered the current regime constitutionally inadequate. Drawing on doctrinal analysis, an examination of all significant judicial interventions—PUCL v Union of India (2003), Subramanian Swamy v Election Commission of India (2013), the VVPAT counting order of 2019—and comparative models from Germany, the United States, Brazil, and the Netherlands, the article argues that the constitutional guarantee of free and fair elections demands a fundamentally reformed electoral technology architecture. The central findings are that legislative provisions on EVMs are skeletal and accountability-deficient; that current VVPAT sampling is statistically inadequate; that the absence of independent technical auditing creates an unresolvable transparency deficit; and that judicial deference to the Election Commission has allowed constitutional standards to lag behind democratic imperatives. Specific legislative, administrative, and judicial reforms are proposed.

Keywords: electronic voting machines, VVPAT, electoral integrity, free and fair elections, Representation of the People Act 1951, Election Commission of India, judicial review, independent audit