Mission Save Constitution: SC Advocates Pracha and Bhanu Pratap Detained During EVM Protest Rally in Delhi

New Delhi- In a dramatic turn of events, prominent Supreme Court advocates Mahmood Pracha and Bhanu Pratap were detained by the police on Friday evening during a rally protesting the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). The peaceful march, organized by Pracha, National Convener of 'Mission Save Constitution,' quickly escalated as police forces intervened, leading to the detention of the advocates and fellow protestors.

On January 1, the duo had forewarned about their movement during a press meet, emphasizing their intention to march to the Election Commission of India to seek a return to paper ballots, asserting that EVMs pose the "biggest threat to democracy." The scheduled gathering at Patiala House Courts aimed to convey a crucial message to the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commission members regarding the alleged impossibility of conducting free and fair elections with EVMs.

The gathering was scheduled to take place on Friday evening at Gate number 4 of Patiala House Courts. From there, the delegation was scheduled to proceed on foot to the office of the ECI. The primary goal has been to engage with the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and other members of the Election Commission of India (ECI) to communicate a significant message. This message highlighted a prevailing agreement among many citizens and experts in computer/EVM/election technology. The consensus asserted that the "utilization of EVMs renders the conduct of free and fair elections unattainable." As a result, the delegation has been advocating for a shift back to the use of paper/physical ballots as the favoured approach for conducting elections.

The protest had just covered a few meters when they were stopped by the police. A police force bus parked right outside the gate was ready to take in the protestors. In the midst of the upheaval, advocates Mehmood Pracha and Bhanu Pratap kept on stating it being the plan of BJP government to not let anyone question EVM machines as the party use them to their advantage. During the push and shove as many media persons dropped their microphones and lost their balance, Mehmood Pracha could be heard saying, “The only reason I am boarding the bus to be detained is the respect I have for police. I do not fear Amit Shah, but I fear the lions on the badge of the policemen.”

Before boarding the bus, advocate Bhanu Pratap said, “I only have one thing to add. The way police are stopping us and not letting us meet the Chief Election Commission only proves us right and demonstrates how important this protest was. This further proves that Narendra Modi is scared of us, and they only have been winning because of EVM tampering.”

A fellow demonstrator commented, “the people who talked about saving the constitution and the parliament are being handcuffed. Where is the law of our constitution? This is Manuwad. This is the law of Manusmriti and not our constitution. It is high time that the common citizens recognize the pattern and raise their voice.”

The call against EVM is not new. Many political parties have also raised the same issue. On 15^th December, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav advocated against the machines. During a media conference, he remarked, “If you want to become a developed country, then why don’t you adopt the system of voting practised in developed countries? A country like America, which is powerful in economy, conducts voting through ballot for months; a country like Japan, which invented EVM, conducts voting through ballot; in Germany, their Supreme Court has imposed a ban that if voting is done through EVM then it is unconstitutional.” He continued, “Should we want to become stronger by distrust and doubt? In the INDIA alliance, we will put forth the resolution to remove EVMs, the BJP will also get dislodged [from power].”

What Does the Election Commission Claim?

In 2019, a committee of experts, appointed by the election commission, concluded that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) are secure against tampering, countering allegations of hacking from several opposition parties. The report said, "Tampering is only possible with physical access and the elaborate sealing process of EVMs done by the ECI prevents this from happening."

In 2017, through a press release, the Election Commission stated, “The ECI-EVMs are not computer controlled, are standalone machines and not connected to the internet and /or any other network at any point of time. Hence, there is no chance of hacking by remote devices."

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