The Supreme Court of India has outlined a clear procedure for verifying Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and conducting mock polls, with the Election Commission of India (ECI) assuring that EVM data will not be erased if verification is requested.

The Supreme Court, on May 7, 2025, established a procedure for verifying Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and conducting mock polls by the Election Commission of India (ECI) at the request of contesting candidates. The ECI confirmed that it would not delete data from EVM units subjected to verification.

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A bench led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta heard the application filed by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), which claimed that the ECI’s Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for EVM verification did not comply with the Supreme Court's April 2024 judgment in the EVM-VVPAT case.

In its affidavit, the ECI informed the court that it would avoid erasing or reloading data on EVMs where verification is requested by candidates. The Court acknowledged this commitment, emphasizing compliance with the judgment dated April 26, 2024.

The Supreme Court directed that EVM verification should be conducted by engineers from Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL). These engineers must issue a certificate confirming that the burnt memory, microcontrollers, and software of the EVMs have not been tampered with and that their integrity remains intact.

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"We accept the said technical proposal. However, the said verification be done by the engineers of Bharatiya Electrical Limited (BEL) and Electronic Corporation of India Limited. The engineers will also issue a certificate that they are satisfied that the burnt memory/microcontrollers and software have not been tampered with." — Supreme Court

Candidates who wish to conduct a mock poll can request it in writing. The engineers will then display the data recorded in the EVM before erasing it for mock polling. The mock poll data will also be verified and certified by BEL/ECIL engineers.

The Court specified that candidates may request the data stored in the Symbol Loading Unit (SLU) not to be erased and to be used for mock polls. The bench further clarified that the SOPs of the ECI must not result in data being cleared without proper verification.

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The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) argued that the existing SOPs of the ECI lacked clear guidelines for verifying the burnt memory or microcontrollers of EVMs and the Symbol Loading Unit (SLU). The ADR claimed that without proper verification, the integrity of the EVM data could be compromised.

• Direct the ECI to verify the burnt memory/microcontrollers of EVMs as per the Supreme Court’s April 2024 judgment.
• Mandate verification of the Symbol Loading Unit (SLU) as part of EVM infrastructure.
• Prevent the ECI from clearing or deleting the original data of EVMs where verification is requested.

Case Details : ASSOCIATION FOR DEMOCRATIC REFORMS Versus ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA AND ANR.| MA 40/2025 in W.P.(C) No. 434/2023 and connected matters