February 11, 2025: The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to respond within 15 days to a plea seeking verification of the burnt memory of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) as part of the commission’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta was hearing the plea filed by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). The court urged the poll body not to erase or reload data on EVMs before an independent examination is conducted.

"Please do not erase the data and reload it. Let someone just examine," the court told the ECI.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing ADR, argued that the procedure followed by the ECI should align with the Supreme Court’s previous rulings. He emphasized the need for an independent examination of both the hardware and software of EVMs to detect potential manipulations.

During the hearing, Chief Justice Khanna inquired whether the paper trail of votes would be preserved after counting. Bhushan responded, stating that both the EVMs and the paper trail should be saved as per protocol.

Clarifying an earlier order, the court stated that it never intended to interfere with the election process but wanted to ensure that any concerns regarding tampering could be addressed through proper engineering verification.

The Supreme Court has now mandated the Election Commission to file its response within the next 15 days, keeping the issue of EVM transparency and accountability in focus ahead of the upcoming elections.