Open to talk about putting online polling booth-wise voter data: EC to SC

The Supreme Court on Tuesday noted the Election Commission of India's (ECI) submission that it was willing to deliberate over the demand for uploading polling booth-wise voter turnout data on its website and asked the petitioners to make representations before the poll panel in 10 days.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justices Sanjay Kumar and K V Viswanathan was hearing two PILs filed by TMC MP Mahua Moitra and NGO Association for Democratic Reforms in 2019, respectively.

The PILs sought a direction to the poll panel to upload polling station-wise voter turnout data on its website within 48 hours of conclusion of polling in the Lok Sabha and assembly elections.

Senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for the poll panel, said Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar wanted to meet and discuss the grievance.

"Here is a new chief election commissioner now. The petitioners can meet him and it may be addressed, he said.

The CJI then said, "In the meanwhile, the counsel for Election Commission states that the petitioners (the NGO and the MP) may file a representation with the Election Commission and the EC will give them a hearing and inform about same in advance. Let the representation be made in 10 days."  The court adjourned the hearing in the July 28 week.

On May 17, last year, the top court had sought a response from the poll panel on the pleas following which the ECI opposed the NGO's demand contending it would "vitiate" the electoral space and cause "chaos" in the poll machinery in the midst of the general elections.