Tue Mar 18 03:00:00 UTC 2025: ## Election Commission Seeks Reforms Amidst Allegations of Electoral Manipulation
**New Delhi, March 18, 2025** – The Election Commission of India (ECI) has called for a meeting with political parties to discuss crucial reforms to the election process. This follows recent allegations of electoral roll manipulation during state assembly elections and reports of duplicate Electoral Photo Identity Cards (EPICs) across different states.
The ECI’s invitation comes in the wake of several controversies. These include a dismissed Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a return to paper ballots and a 100% VVPAT (Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail) match with EVM (Electronic Voting Machine) counts. While the Supreme Court rejected these demands, it did order verification of 5% of EVMs in each assembly segment upon request from candidates finishing second or third.
Further fueling concerns, opposition parties have alleged widespread manipulation of electoral rolls in recent state elections, citing the presence of numerous bogus voters. The issue of identical EPIC numbers assigned to voters in different states has also raised red flags. While the ECI attributes this to a previously decentralized EPIC number allocation system, opposition parties see it as evidence of voter fraud.
Beyond voting procedures, the ECI also highlighted concerns about the campaign process. These include the rampant use of abusive language and appeals to caste and communal sentiments by “star campaigners,” significant breaches of election expenditure limits by candidates and parties, and the alarmingly high number of elected officials with criminal records.
To address these issues, the ECI proposes several reforms. These include scientifically determining the sample size for EVM-VVPAT matching, potentially introducing “totalizer” machines to aggregate votes, and strengthening the verification process for suspected EVM tampering. Linking Aadhaar numbers with EPICs is also under consideration, pending discussions on privacy concerns. The ECI also recommends stricter enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct, including revoking “star campaigner” status for violations and imposing penalties on parties for non-compliance. Further reforms include setting expenditure limits for political parties and stricter enforcement of disclosure requirements for criminal antecedents.
The ECI emphasizes the need for meaningful dialogue with political parties to ensure free and fair elections, a cornerstone of India’s democratic framework.
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