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SC seeks response from EC on tallying of VVPAT (Lead)
New Delhi, Jan 7 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Monday sought a response from the Election Commission (EC) on increasing the tallying of count and cross-verify the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs) with EVMs from the current 10 per cent to 30 per cent for this year’s general elections.
A bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjay Krishan Kaul issued the notice while hearing a PIL.
The PIL petitioners have sought direction to the EC to count and cross-verify the VVPAT in at least 30 per cent randomly chosen polling stations within each Assembly segment/constituency.
The PIL petitioners have contended that “the larger principles of structural due process, transparency, examinability, voter confidence and voter satisfaction” require the Commission to conduct random cross-verification of EVM counts with VVPAT counts in order to “not only detect any technological mischief or malprogramming of EVMs, but also deter such mischief”.
PIL petitioners M.G. Devasahayam and Thomas Franco Rajendra Dev from Tamil Nadu, and Kalarickal Pranchu Fabian from Delhi have contended that such cross-verification and counting of VVPAT slips is essential in the interests of transparency and public scrutiny of the electoral process.
The PIL has described as “manifestly arbitrary, irrational, unreasonable and, inter alia, in violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India, the Election Commission’s decision to confine such a cross-verification exercise to a statistically insignificant number of approximately only one polling station in each constituency, regardless of the number of polling stations in such a constituency”.
Devasahayam is a retired IAS and a former Indian Army officer, Kalarickal Pranchu Fabian is a former Indian Foreign Service Officer, who had retired as India’s Ambassador to Italy and Permanent Representative to the UN in Rome, and Thomas Franco Rajendra Dev is a retired Banker and was the General Secretary of All India Bank Officers Confederation.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.