Daily Times

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday ruled that legislation by Parliament on the electronic voting machine (EVM) is mandatory, a private TV channel reported.

IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah issued a three-page written verdict on a petition by advocate Tariq Asad regarding holding general elections through EVMs. The court disposed of the petition, saying that legislation is required by Parliament for use of EVMs. In the decision, the court said that it has no doubt that the parliament would not take a decision to make the law following the interest of the people after considering all the concerns about the machine. The court further said that the use of EVMs in elections is not a strange act as many countries are already practicing it.

The court said that a legislation by the parliament in this regard is required, adding that the applicant’s concerns at this stage are premature. The court ruled that holding fair and transparent elections is the constitutional responsibility of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), adding that the ECP is responsible for protecting elections from rigging.

A day earlier, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Senator Shibli Faraz had said a peaceful and transparent election through EVMs was crucial for improving the electoral system. Talking to a private news channel, he had said the government was following a comprehensive programme for promoting information technology and modern knowledge. The federal minister had said that it was the need of the hour to use technology for improving the country’s electoral system. “EVMs would reduce the human interface and make the electoral system more efficient, free, and credible,” he had said.

Earlier, Shibli had also announced that a person who can hack the locally manufactured electronic voting machine (EVM) will get Rs 1 million. “We will challenge hackers to hack the electronic voting machine and if they can hack it, we will give them an award of Rs1 million.”