Shillong: A local advocacy group wants the plug pulled on electronic voting machines in Meghalaya. The For Genuine Citizens of Meghalaya Forum officially filed a request with the Chief Electoral Officer on August 12 to bring back paper ballots. Ronnie M. Rani, a resident of Madan Laban on Kench’s Trace Road, signed the document. The Election Department’s Commissioner and Secretary acknowledged the delivery the following day.
Critics claim paper ballots boost transparency. The group argues these methods let voters, candidates, and polling agents track the process with their own eyes. They insist that traditional voting, bolstered by safeguards against ballot stuffing and identity fraud, would restore public faith in local democracy. The formal petition asks the Election Commission to consider these changes within current legal and constitutional boundaries.
The forum stresses that their push is not a personal vendetta. "It is submitted in the larger public interest and with the sincere objective of strengthening faith in the democratic and electoral process," the letter reads. They are not asking for a fight. They want a conversation.
The group demands wide-ranging talks with civil society, political parties, and election experts before any system overhaul. They also want any future counting process to remain open to independent observers. The Chief Electoral Officer must now decide how to act under existing election laws.
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