The World’s Largest Election: Role of the ECI

Primarily, the ECI schedules and conducts elections by preparing and maintaining electoral rolls, issuing voter ID cards, and ensuring free and fair elections. (read about simplified election jargon here!)

The elections were initially conducted through paper ballots which were counted manually. This was expensive and highly time consuming. The phased introduction of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) made elections faster, less expensive and less prone to fraudulent practices.

EVMs are made in a way that they are accessible to the remotest parts of the country. Firstly, they are not powered by electricity but rather by ordinary batteries. EVMs are transferred by helicopters to places like Andaman, and to villages with primordial connectivity.

The ECI has introduced a measure that voters may use to verify that their votes were cast as intended called the Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT). In order to determine the accuracy, VVPAT slips are later used to verify votes in five randomly selected polling booths. However, several candidates and parties have demanded for the verification of at least 50–100% of the VVPAT slips. The ECI also issues the Model Code of Conduct for political parties and candidates which is a set of guidelines for all political parties and candidates during elections. It declares several provisions, some of which include prohibiting the introduction of last-minute schemes and inciting polarization just before polling.

In a populated nation such as India, where conducting elections can be a challenge, the ECI have been instrumental in promoting democracy regardless of any obstacles that come their way.

By Zeba Bharwani