Democracy in Action: Understanding the Electoral Vote Counting Process in India

It is worth noting that the recent democratic process has seen an unprecedented 642 million voters participating, marking it as the largest democratic exercise in the history of the world. Now, the voices of these millions must be acknowledged and respected.

The process of counting the votes is scheduled to commence at 8 am on Tuesday. During the subsequent four hours, it is expected that discernible patterns and trends will start to become evident.

The counting process is diligently conducted under the close supervision and guidance of the Returning Officer (RO) assigned to each electoral constituency. The candidates and their election representatives are present during the counting process. The RO, typically the District Magistrate of the relevant district, is appointed by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to oversee and manage the electoral process.

During the counting of votes, Assistant Returning Officers hold the authority to supervise the process, particularly in cases where a single Returning Officer oversees multiple constituencies. The counting of votes in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) at different tables is carried out by designated counting officials appointed by the Returning Officer. These officials are selected based on the expected number of postal ballots and the total number of counting tables.

The counting officials at each table comprise a counting supervisor, usually a gazetted officer or an equivalent authority, a counting assistant, staff members from Group D employees who are responsible for counting, and a micro observer. The micro-observer assumes the crucial role of overseeing the integrity and fairness of the counting process at their respective table.

The officials responsible for overseeing the electoral process are selected from a pool of officers using specialized software created by the state’s Chief Electoral Officer. In a counting hall, there can be multiple counting tables. Since the candidates or their representatives cannot be physically present at each counting location and table, the law allows candidates to designate multiple counting agents to represent them at each counting table, including the table where postal ballots are tallied.

The following individuals are permitted to enter the counting hall: counting supervisors, counting assistants, micro-observers, ECI-authorized individuals and observers, public servants on election duty, candidates, election agents, and counting agents. It’s important to note that police officers and government ministers are not classified as “public servants” in this specific context. Additionally, it’s strictly prohibited for anyone, including the candidate, Returning Officer (RO), or Assistant RO, to carry a mobile phone inside the counting hall. The only person authorized to do so is the ECI’s Observer.

As for the location of vote counting, according to Rule 51 (“Time and place for counting of votes”) of The Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, the returning officer must appoint the place or places where the counting of votes will take place at least one week before the poll, as well as specify the date and time at which the counting will commence.

The ECI’s Handbook for Returning Officers specifies that the date and time of counting of votes is fixed by the Commission for the sake of uniformity. The location of the counting is determined by the RO and is preferably at the RO’s headquarters in the constituency. However, the ECI states that “there will be no legal objection even if the place so fixed is outside the limit of the constituency”.

Votes for a specific Assembly constituency are counted at a single location. However, the ECI specifies that “each Assembly constituency or an Assembly segment of a parliamentary constituency is to be counted in a separate hall and under no circumstances can the counting of more than one Assembly constituency be taken simultaneously in a hall”.

Each counting hall “shall be a separate room walled on all sides preferably with separate exit and entry facilities”. If pre-constructed separate rooms are not available, large rooms should be divided to create halls, with each part constituting a hall separated by temporary partitions. Furthermore, each counting hall can accommodate a maximum of 14 counting tables, in addition to the RO’s table.

The election counting process incorporates two types of votes: those from Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) and postal ballots, which are used by senior citizens, physically challenged individuals, service voters, and others. It’s important to note that postal ballots are counted separately from EVM votes.

The counting process commences with the tabulation of postal ballots, which takes place at the Returning Officer’s table. Subsequently, the EVM counting begins 30 minutes later. The Strong Room, where the polled EVMs are stored, is opened in the presence of the Observer, RO/ARO(s), and the candidates or their election agents. The opening of the seal lock is meticulously documented in a logbook with corresponding date and time stamps.

For the EVM counting process, the EVMs are arranged on tables in rows, each sequentially numbered. Counting agents are allocated designated seating at each table. Barricades or wire mesh are placed around each counting table to maintain transparency and security to prevent physical access to the EVMs. The counting agents are required to remain seated beyond these boundaries.

At each counting table, the votes from a single polling station are addressed at a time. Only the Control Unit of the EVM utilized at each polling station is required to derive the poll results for that station while the Ballot Units remain secured in a strong room. Upon inspection of the paper seals, the counting official activates the Control Unit and presses the result button, whereby the total number of votes for each candidate and NOTA (None of the Above) at the polling station appears on the display panel.

The counting supervisor meticulously records the results for each candidate in “Part II-Result of Counting” of Form 17C based on the displayed information. If necessary, the result button can be pressed again to allow candidates and their agents to note the results before deactivating the control unit.

After the completion of counting all Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for a specific round, the Election Commission of India (ECI) Observer conducts a parallel count of two randomly chosen EVMs. Following this, a tabulation for the round is carried out. The Returning Officer (RO) then announces the result of that round of counting and signs the relevant record (Part II of Form 17C). Subsequently, the RO or the Assistant Returning Officer (ARO) verbally authorizes the EVMs for the next round to be brought from the strong room into the counting hall.

Once all the rounds of EVM counting are completed, the process of tallying the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) begins. It is important to note that this process is carried out sequentially for all polling stations, not simultaneously. On average, it takes approximately one hour to verify the slips from each VVPAT machine.