These applications were received pursuant to the Supreme Court order in April, when, for the first time, the Court gave candidates who stood second and third the right to seek verification of the burnt memory/ microcontrollers of 5 per cent of EVMs per Assembly segment or constituency.

On June 1, the EC released an administrative Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), which says candidates who want to apply for verification must do so within seven days of the results and deposit Rs 40,000 per EVM.

The technical SOP — which will detail how the burnt memory verification will be done — is being finalised and is expected to be released this week. According to sources, the Commission is veering towards the idea of organising a mock poll on the machines identified by the candidates, given that it is a tried-and-tested method to establish the efficacy of the EVMs. The matching of VVPAT slips with the EVM count will also be done as part of this process.

During the mock poll, it is learnt that the candidate will be at liberty to cast votes herself or get a representative to do so. Further, if the candidate wishes, the three parts of the EVM — the Control Unit (CU), Ballot Unit, and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail Unit (VVPAT) — can be arranged and connected in whichever sequence she prefers.

The CU controls the functioning of the EVM. A voter cannot cast her vote unless the CU is activated. The BU carries the names of the parties and candidates, and the VVPAT is supposed to print a slip with the symbol of the candidate for whom a vote is cast, allowing the voter to verify her vote.

Currently, the three parts of the EVM are connected in the following order: the BU is connected to the VVPAT, and the VVPAT is connected to the CU. However, these can be connected in any order without affecting the functioning of the voting machine. To satisfy the candidate seeking verification, the Commission is also likely to permit her to have the three parts connected in any order of her preference.

On April 26, the Supreme Court dismissed a request for 100 per cent verification of VVPAT slips against the EVM count. However, it instructed the EC to implement some modifications in the post-counting procedure to enhance trust in the electronic voting system.

For the first time, the court directed the EC to seal and store the symbol loading units (SLUs) for 45 days after the results are announced. SLUs, which are memory units used to upload election symbols to VVPAT machines, are initially connected to a computer to load these symbols. After the results are declared, these SLUs are to be opened, examined, and handled in the same manner as EVMs. It’s not clear if the EC has decided the procedure for examination of SLUs.

Additionally, the Supreme Court has granted candidates who stood second and third the right to request verification of the EVMs, marking another unprecedented decision.

In its administrative SOP released on June 1, the EC said candidates would get a week from the date of the results to file an application for verification. However, verification will only be possible after 45 days (from the date of results), since candidates have the right to file election petitions to challenge the result. In case an election petition has been filed, the candidate seeking EVM verification will have to get special permission from the High Court, since EVMs of the constituency pertaining to which a petition is filed are sealed by the Commission.