The Delhi state election commission has dismissed a plea which demands the removal of candidates’ party symbols from electronic voting machines (EVM) in upcoming civic polls.
The Poll panel told a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal, “(Any order on) the petition would directly affect all the national and state political parties. Since all the national and state political parties have not been impleaded in the present petition, it is liable to be dismissed on this ground alone,” said the poll panel to bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and It said the petitioner has not impleaded the Election Commission of India (ECI) as a party in the plea. “It (the state election commission) has been following the steps taken by the ECI…,”
The state election commission response was to a plea by law student Sanjana Gahlot, who in her petition has said, “The presence of a party symbol on the EVM is arbitrary, illegal, unconstitutional and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution. The respondents, in particular the state election commission (SEC), have failed to conduct free and fair elections (by-elections in 2016 for filling up casual vacancies in posts of councillors),”
“The SEC is duty-bound to conduct free and fair elections and this duty is of public nature,” said her plea and that the state poll panel “simply copied the same format and design as was used by the Election Commission of India for elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies”.
