For the first time, the Supreme Court has set aside the 2022 sarpanch election victory in Haryana’s Panipat district village of Buana Lakhu following a direction to recount Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) votes at its headquarters.
The recount, overseen by the Supreme Court Registrar, overturned the announced result and declared Mohit Kumar the winner with 1,051 votes, whereas previously announced winner Kuldeep Singh got 1,000 votes.
The judgment altered the outcome after almost three years of courtroom battle.
The panel of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and N Kotiswar Singh had ordered that the EVMs and election papers be produced in the court.
The recount was on August 6 before officials, representatives of the two candidates, and lawyers, and the whole procedure was videographed.
The controversy arose when Kuldeep Singh was declared elected in the November 2022 panchayat election.
Mohit Kumar lodged a complaint against the result on grounds of miscounting at one of the polling stations by mistake on the part of the presiding officer.
Accepting the report of the Registrar, on August 11, the court instructed the Deputy Commissioner of Panipat to declare the result within two days and permit Mohit Kumar to take up office as sarpanch.
The court observed that although legal questions can still be raised before the Election Tribunal, the recount done under its supervision is final and binding for practical purposes.
This is the first time that the Supreme Court has done an EVM recount at its own premises. Legal professionals indicate the verdict makes an important precedent when it comes to resolving election disputes and enhances judicial monitoring of the electoral process.
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