Polling station clips could breach privateness of voters, says EC

Sharing the footage — recorded by means of CCTVS, webcast or videography — would allow simple identification of electors by any group or particular person, and would go away them susceptible to “stress, discrimination, and intimidation by anti-social components”, officers acquainted with the matter stated citing the EC’s communication.

In a round dated June 18, the fee directed all states and Union territories that the revised rule will apply to elections notified after Might 30, 2025.

“[The videos] shall be produced in authentic earlier than the Excessive Court docket adjudicating an election petition on its order and shall not be opened and their contents shall not be inspected by, or produced earlier than, any particular person or authority besides the Excessive Court docket adjudicating the Election Petition,” the fee stated within the round, which additionally contained earlier communications pertaining to the preservation of video. HT has seen a replica of the round.

The modifications have come within the backdrop of a requirement by the Congress and different opposition events to launch post-5pm CCTV footage from polling cubicles within the 2024 Maharashtra meeting elections.

In December final 12 months, the federal government tweaked an election rule to forestall public inspection of sure digital paperwork similar to CCTV cameras and webcasting footage in addition to video recordings of candidates to forestall their misuse.

Based mostly on the advice of the EC, the Union legislation ministry amended Rule 93 of the Conduct of Election Guidelines, 1961, to limit the kind of papers or paperwork open to public inspection.

The fee has additionally directed it officers to destroy such video footage after 45 days of declaration of outcomes if the election verdict will not be challenged in courts, a separate round issued on Might 30 and cited within the newest round stated.

Since election outcomes can’t be challenged past 45 days, retaining such footage past this era would make it prone to misuse for “spreading misinformation and malicious narratives”, an official acquainted with the matter stated.

However in case an election petition is filed throughout the stipulated time of 45 days, the movies is not going to be destroyed and made obtainable to the competent court docket, the official cited above stated.

Offering movies is akin to offering entry to Type 17A (register of voters) — which accommodates info pertaining to the sequence wherein electors enter a polling station, serial variety of the elector within the electoral roll — underneath Rule 49L of the Conduct of Election Guidelines, the official stated.

“Violation of secrecy of voting is a punishable offence underneath part 128 of RPA, 1951 [maintenance of secrecy of voting] with imprisonment for a time period as much as three months or superb or each. Thus, ECI is legally certain and dedicated to guard the privateness of the electors and secrecy of voting,” the official stated requesting anonymity.

A second official stated that safeguarding the pursuits of its electors is “of prime concern”.

“For the ECI safeguarding the pursuits of its electors and sustaining their privateness and secrecy is of prime concern, even when among the political events/ curiosity teams mount stress on the Fee to desert the laid down procedures or to disregard the safety issues of the electors. Sustaining privateness and secrecy of the elector is non-negotiable and the ECI has, by no means previously, compromised on this important tenet laid down within the legislation as properly upheld by the Supreme Court docket,” the second official stated, requesting anonymity.

The transfer triggered a pointy response from Chief of Opposition within the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, who accused EC of “deleting proof” when it was required to “present solutions”.

“Voter checklist? Won’t give machine-readable format. CCTV footage? Hidden by altering the legislation. Election images and movies? Now they are going to be deleted in 45 days, not 1 12 months. The one who was supposed to offer solutions – is the one deleting the proof,” Gandhi alleged in a publish on X.

“It’s clear that the match is fastened. And a set election is poison for democracy,” the Chief of Opposition in Lok Sabha posted in Hindi.

Gandhi has been demanding voter lists, ballot knowledge and video footage from the election fee, alleging irregularities in Maharashtra meeting elections.

Whereas the ECI didn’t reply to Gandhi’s feedback, a 3rd official stated: “[Opposition’s remarks] swimsuit their narrative in making the demand sound fairly real and within the curiosity of voters and safeguarding the democratic course of within the nation, it’s the truth is aimed toward attaining precisely the other goal. What’s veiled as a really logical demand, is definitely solely opposite to the privateness and safety issues of the voters.”

Earlier within the week, a purported video displaying two individuals standing on the EVM in a polling sales space throughout the Visavadar meeting bypoll in Gujarat — held on June 19 — emerged on social media, with EC launching a probe into how the video was leaked.