Supreme Court Declines to Mandate ECI to Release Total Votes Cast per Booth Information

The Supreme Court declined to issue any immediate orders on a petition by NGO Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), which sought instructions for the Election Commission of India (ECI) to disclose verified voter turnout data within 48 hours of polling in the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections. Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma pointed out similarities between the current plea and a previous one from 2019, questioning why the petitioner hadn't filed earlier. Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, representing ADR, explained that the application was filed after ECI disclosures. However, the Court refused interim relief, stating that the prayers in both petitions were alike.

The Court clarified that it hadn't formed an opinion on the merits of the case and scheduled the interim plea for a post-summer vacation hearing. The application stemmed from a recent controversy over significant discrepancies in voter turnout data announced by ECI for the initial phases of the ongoing elections, prompting concerns about transparency. ECI, in response, argued against the compulsory publication of final voter turnout data, citing potential confusion among voters due to the inclusion of postal ballot counts in the figures derived from Form 17C.