No requests for EVM burnt memory checks in Bihar Polls: ECI

Poll authorities in Bihar have not received any application from defeated candidates seeking verification of burnt memory or microcontroller data of electronic voting machines (EVMs) used in the recent assembly election, the Election Commission of India (ECI) said on Thursday.

Poll authorities in Bihar have not received any application from defeated candidates seeking verification of burnt memory or microcontroller data of electronic voting machines (EVMs) used in the recent assembly election, the Election Commission of India (ECI) said on Thursday.

The ECI noted that no candidate, placed second or third in any constituency, submitted a request within the mandated seven-day window after the declaration of results.

The ECI noted that no candidate, placed second or third in any constituency, submitted a request within the mandated seven-day window after the declaration of results. The same position applied to the eight assembly bypolls conducted alongside the second phase of polling on November 11.

Revised SOPs, issued on June 17 following directions from the Supreme Court, allow candidates finishing immediately behind the winner to apply for post-counting checks of the microcontroller or burnt memory of EVMs.

Results for both the Bihar Assembly election and the bypolls were announced on November 14. According to the ECI, no request was filed in any seat across the state during the stipulated period. The Commission has maintained that the verification mechanism is available to candidates seeking technical scrutiny of EVMs after counting. The ECI has closed the window for filings related to the 2025 Bihar polls and the eight bypolls held simultaneously.

The Commission has maintained that the verification mechanism is available to candidates seeking technical scrutiny of EVMs after counting. Under the June SOPs, district election authorities must acknowledge and process any valid request, and the verification is to be carried out in the presence of applicants or their authorised representatives.

With the deadline now over, the EC has closed the window for filings related to the 2025 Bihar polls and the eight bypolls held simultaneously.