TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2024 (4) TMI 1085
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....rma, Advs., VKC Law Offices, Party-in-Person, R.H.A. Sikander, AORs, Anand Grover, Sr. Adv., Pranav Sachdeva, AOR, Jatin Bhardwaj, Aakriti, Abhay Nair, Advs., Anand Grover, Sr. Adv., Neha Rathi, AOR, Kamal Kishore, Kajal Giri, Advs., Zulfiker Ali P.S., AOR, Nizam Pasha, Adv., Lzafeer Ahmad B.F., AOR and Aayushi Mishra, Adv. JUDGMENT SANJIV KHANNA, J. 1. Delay in refiling is condoned. 2. At the outset, we take on record that the counsel for the Petitioners, in unison, have stated that the Petitioners do not attribute any motive or malice to the Election Commission of India^1, or for that matter contend that the Electronic Voting Machines^2 have been tutored or configured to favour or disfavour a candidate or political party. However, due to possibility of manipulating the EVMs there is suspicion and, therefore, this Court should step in to instil confidence in the voters^3 and the people. Voters have the right to know that the franchise exercised by them has been correctly recorded and counted. 3. On a pointed question put by the Court, it was argued, without prejudice and in the alternative, on behalf of the Petitioner - Association for Democratic Reforms, that the C....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ies showcase that EVMs have led to increase in voter participation^9 Yet, it is also true that time and again use of EVMs has been objected to and questioned, not by one but by all political parties and others. There have been several litigations in this Court and the High Courts, albeit the challenge to the use of EVMs has been rejected recording good grounds and reasons. 7. We deem it appropriate to begin this decision by referring to some of the earlier case laws and judgments of this Court on the efficacy and use of EVMs in the elections in this country. 8. This Court in Subramanian Swamy v. Election Commission of India, 2013:INSC:699 : (2013) 10 SCC 500 held that a paper trail was an indispensable requirement of free and fair elections. The relevant portion of the judgment is reproduced below: 28. From the materials placed by both the sides, we are satisfied that the 'paper trail' is an indispensable requirement of free and fair elections. The confidence of the voters in the EVMs can be achieved only with the introduction of the "paper trail". EVMs with Vvpat system ensure the accuracy of the voting system. With an intent to have fullest transparency in ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....hedule announced by the ECI must be kept in mind. 10. Having considered the matter, we are of the view that if the number of EVMs in respect of which Vvpat paper slips is to be subjected to physical scrutiny is increased from 1 to 5, the additional manpower that would be required would not be difficult for the ECI to provide nor would the declaration of the result be substantially delayed. In fact, if the said number is increased to 5, the process of verification can be done by the same team of polling staff and supervisors/officials. It is, therefore, our considered view that having regard to the totality of the facts of the case and need to generate the greatest degree of satisfaction in all with regard to the full accuracy of the election results, the number of EVMs that would now be subjected to verification so far as Vvpat paper trail is concerned would be 5 per Assembly Constituency or Assembly Segments in a Parliamentary Constituency instead of what is provided by Guideline No. 16.6, namely, one machine per Assembly Constituency or Assembly Segment in a Parliamentary Constituency. We also direct that the random selection of the machines that would be subjected to th....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... Petitioner has placed no actionable material on the record of the Court to indicate that the Election Commission has acted in breach of its constitutional mandate. Ultimately, the manner in which the source code should be audited and the way the audit should be dealt with bears on sensitive issues pertaining to the integrity of the elections which are conducted under the superintendence of the Election Commission. On such a policy issue, we are not inclined to issue a direction as sought by the Petitioner. There is no material before this Court, at this stage, to indicate that the Election Commission is not taking suitable steps to fulfill its mandate. 15. This Court in Kamal Nath v. Election Commission of India and Ors. 2018:INSC:968 : (2019) 2 SCC 260, observed that it was without doubt that over the last several decades ECI has built the reputation of an impartial body and a constitutional authority which strives to hold fair election in which the people of this country participate with great trust and faith. The challenge to the EVMs and prayer for conducting VVPAT verification on random basis for 10% of the votes was rejected. 16. We could have dismissed the present wri....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... candidates or political parties. As noted earlier, the polling/presiding officer has to activate the EVM by pressing the 'BALLOT' button on the control unit. The data stored in the control unit, upon the vote being cast, records and counts the button or the key pressed on the ballot unit. The data, therefore, records the total number of votes as cast by the voters, and the key or the button number on the ballot unit pressed by the voters for casting their vote. After the vote is cast and the control unit has recorded the vote, a loud beep sound confirms the registration of the vote. 19. The EVMs are manufactured and supplied to the ECI by two public sector undertakings, namely, Bharat Electronics Limited^11 (which functions under the Ministry of Defence), and Electronic Corporation of India Limited^12 (which functions under the Department of Atomic Energy).^13 The EVMs in use after 2013 are referred to as 'M3' EVMs. The EVM setup is designed in a rudimentary fashion and the EVM units are standalone and non-networked, that is, they are unconnectable to any other third-party machine or input source. In case any unauthorised attempt is made to access the microcontr....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....the recognised political parties. The FLC is carried out at the district level under the supervision of the District Election Officer. 25. During the FLC, 100% or all machines are checked by casting of vote in each of the 16 buttons on the ballot unit 6 times. Further, 5% of the machines are randomly selected by the representatives of the recognised political parties for a higher mock poll by them. Out of the 5% EVMs; 1200 votes are cast in 1% EVMs, 1000 votes are cast in 2% EVMs and 500 votes are cast in 2% EVMs. The voting result indicated in the control unit is tallied with the VVPAT slip count. A list of 'FLC OK' EVMs is prepared and shared with all the recognised political parties. 26. After check and verification that the EVM is working properly, the control unit of each EVM is sealed with a pink paper seal which is signed by the representatives of the political parties. Thereafter, the plastic cabinet of the EVMs cannot be opened. There is no access to any of the EVM components. Till this stage the VVPAT flash memory is empty and it does not have any data or symbols. 27. 10% of the 'FLC OK' EVMs are taken out for training and awareness purpose in the....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....oaded on VVPAT units by using the symbol loading units. Authorised engineers of the manufacturers and the District Election Officer are involved in the symbol loading process. The whole process takes place in the presence of the candidates or their representatives and a monitor/TV screen displays the symbol loading process. 31. It is at this stage that the specific button/key on the ballot unit is allocated to each candidate. The sequence/location of button/key allocated to a candidate of a political party is done in alphabetical order on the basis of the name of the candidate, first for the National and State recognised political parties, followed by other State registered parties, and then for independent candidates. Thus, the sequence/location of the button/key on the ballot unit and the consequent allotment for the purposes of the VVPAT varies from constituency to constituency. For example, candidate or political party 'A' may be allocated button '1' in one parliamentary constituency, whereas button '1' may be allocated to political party 'B' in another constituency. 32. There are 16 buttons/keys on each ballot unit. In case there are more ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....olitical parties/candidates. 35. Thus, it is clear that till the symbol loading into the VVPAT is done by using the symbol loading unit, the EVM is blank and has no data/particulars of political parties or candidates. One cannot ascertain and know which button/key in the ballot unit will be allocated to a particular candidate or a political party. 36. It has been highlighted before us by the ECI that the symbol loading process conducted by using symbol loading unit in the VVPAT cannot be equated with the uploading of the software. A bitmap file comprising of the serial number, name of the candidate and the symbol allocated to the particular candidate is uploaded in the symbol loading process. The symbol loading process undertaken by using the symbol loading unit cannot alter or modify the programme/firmware in the VVPAT which has been burnt/loaded in the memory. The control unit and the ballot unit are not subjected to the symbol loading process and not touched. The burnt/loaded firmware in the control unit and the ballot unit is and remains candidate and political party agnostic. The control unit acts and functions as the calculator, computing the total votes cast on the bas....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
..... The burnt memory, as noticed above, which records this data is agnostic to the candidates/political parties. The control unit records the serial number of the button/key pressed on the ballot unit by each voter. The presiding officer by pressing the 'TOTAL' key on the control unit can ascertain the total number of votes recorded in the control unit. However, the breakup of votes cast in favour of each candidate is not known. On the counting day, in the presence of the candidates/their representatives, the 'RESULT' key on the control unit is pressed. The control unit displays the number of times each button/key was pressed in the ballot unit on the polling day, thus depicting the result. EVMs are standalone machines which cannot be connected to internet. The EVMs do not have any ports so as to enable a person to have access to the burnt memory. 42. It flows from the above discussion that the possibility to hack or tamper with the agnostic firmware in the burnt memory to tutor/favour results is unfounded. Accordingly, the suspicion that the EVMs can be configured/manipulated for repeated or wrong recording of vote(s) to favour a particular candidate should be rej....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ed to view through the transparent window of the printer of VVPAT, kept along with the ballot unit inside the voting compartment, the printed paper slip showing the serial number, the name and the symbol of the candidate for whom he has voted. Thereupon, the paper slip gets cut and drops into the drop box attached to the VVPAT. No elector is permitted to enter the voting compartment when another voter is inside. 46. Rule 49O deals with the scenario where an elector, even after entering her/his details in Form 17A and having put signature or thumb impression thereon, does not vote. The presiding officer is then required to make a remark in Form 17A and take the signature or thumb impression of the elector against such remark. 47. Rule 49M(6) deals with the scenario where the elector who has been permitted to vote Under Rule 49L or Rule 49P refuses, even after the warning by the presiding officer, to observe the procedure of voting laid down in Rule 49(M)(3). In such a case, the presiding officer, or the polling officer under the direction of the presiding officer, shall not allow such elector to vote. Rule 49M(7) lays down that in such a scenario, a remark to that effect shall....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ment of the parliamentary constituency, are randomly selected and counted. The results are then tallied with the electronic results of the control unit. 54. It may be relevant here to also refer to Rule 56D of the 1961 Rules, which reads as under: 56-D. Scrutiny of paper trail.-(1) Where printer for paper trail is used, after the entries made in the result sheet are announced, any candidate, or in his absence, his election agent or any of his counting agents may apply in writing to the returning officer to count the printed paper slips in the drop box of the printer in respect of any polling station or polling stations. (2) On such application being made, the returning officer shall, subject to such general or special guidelines, as may be issued by the Election Commission, decide the matter and may allow the application in whole or in part or may reject in whole, if it appears to him to be frivolous or unreasonable. (3) Every decision of the returning officer Under Sub-rule (2) shall be in writing and shall contain the reasons therefor. (4) If the returning officer decides Under Sub-rule (2) to allow counting of the paper slips either wholly ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ve been tallied with the electronic counts of their control units. Not even a single case of mismatch, (except one which we will refer to subsequently), or wrong recording of votes has been detected. Returning officers have allowed VVPAT slip recounting Under Rule 56D in 100 cases since 2017. The VVPAT slip count matched with the electronic count recorded in the control unit in all cases.^19 59. In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, 20,687 VVPAT slips were physically counted, and except in one case, no discrepancy or mismatch was noticed. 60. The discrepancy during mandatory verification of VVPAT slips happened in polling station No. 63, Mydukur Assembly Constituency, Andhra Pradesh during the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections. On verification, it was found that the discrepancy had arisen on account of failure of the presiding officer to delete the mock poll data.^20 While it is not possible to Rule out human errors, paragraph 14.5 of Chapter 14 of the Manual on EVM and VVPATs deals with such situations and lays down the protocol which is to be followed. 61. During the course of hearing, our attention was drawn to Rule 49MA which permits an elector to raise a complaint regarding the mis....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....c. as affixed after counting of the votes. The candidates have the right to challenge the poll result by filing an election petition within 45 days from the date of election of the returned candidate. The ECI guidelines/protocol stipulate that confirmation regarding the filing status of election petitions must be obtained from the relevant High Courts. If challenge is made, the EVMs are retained in the strong room along with the seals etc. for a longer period. In cases where no election petitions are filed, the strongrooms are opened and the EVMs are shifted to the warehouse. 66. The ECI has also in its counter affidavit stated that the EVMs have been continuously used in different elections since the year 2000. The electoral outcome had been divergent, favouring or disfavouring different political parties. Details of the political parties with maximum number of seats since 2004 is tabulated as under: 67. We have referred to the data, after elucidating the mechanics and the safeguards embedded in the EVMs to check and obviate wrongdoing, and to evaluate the efficacy and performance of the EVMs. We acknowledge the right of voters to question the working of EVMs, which are but ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....d and counted, the same cannot be equated with the right to 100% counting of VVPAT slips, or a right to physical access to the VVPAT slips, which the voter should be permitted to put in the drop box. These are two separate aspects - the former is the right itself and the latter is a plea to protect or how to secure the right. The voters' right can be protected and safeguarded by adopting several measures. This Court in Subramanian Swamy (supra) had directed gradual introduction of VVPATs to guarantee utmost transparency and integrity in the system. This direction was made to safeguard the right of the voters to know that the vote has been correctly recorded in the EVM. The direction has been implemented. The voter can see the VVPAT slip through the glass window and this assures the voter that his vote as cast has been recorded and will be counted. In N. Chandrababu Naidu (supra), the direction for counting the VVPAT paper trail in 5 EVMs per assembly constituency or assembly segment in a parliamentary constituency was issued, primarily as a precautionary measure rather than a justification or necessity. This decision was aimed at ensuring the highest level of confidence in the ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....e submission to return to the ballot paper system. The weakness of the ballot paper system is well known and documented. In the Indian context, keeping in view the vast size of the Indian electorate of nearly 97 crore, the number of candidates who contest the elections, the number of polling booths where voting is held, and the problems faced with ballot papers, we would be undoing the electoral reforms by directing reintroduction of the ballot papers. EVMs offer significant advantages. They have effectively eliminated booth capturing by restricting the rate of vote casting to 4 votes per minute, thereby prolonging the time needed and thus check insertion of bogus votes. EVMs have eliminated invalid votes, which were a major issue with paper ballots and had often sparked disputes during the counting process. Furthermore, EVMs reduce paper usage and alleviate logistical challenges. Finally, they provide administrative convenience by expediting the counting process and minimizing errors. 73. ECI has been categoric that the glass window on the VVPAT has not undergone any change. The term used in Rule 49M is 'transparent window'. The tinted glass used on the VVPAT printer is....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... because we have any doubt, but to only further strengthen the integrity of the election process, we are inclined to issue the following directions: (a) On completion of the symbol loading process in the VVPATs undertaken on or after 01.05.2024, the symbol loading units shall be sealed and secured in a container. The candidates or their representatives shall sign the seal. The sealed containers, containing the symbol loading units, shall be kept in the strong room along with the EVMs at least for a period of 45 days post the declaration of results. They shall be opened, examined and dealt with as in the case of EVMs. (b) The burnt memory/microcontroller in 5% of the EVMs, that is, the control unit, ballot unit and the VVPAT, per assembly constituency/assembly segment of a parliamentary constituency shall be checked and verified by the team of engineers from the manufacturers of the EVMs, post the announcement of the results, for any tampering or modification, on a written request made by candidates who are at SI. No. 2 or Sl. No. 3, behind the highest polled candidate. Such candidates or their representatives shall identify the EVMs by the polling station or seria....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....d and we clarify here, means the ballot unit, the control unit and the VVPAT unit. 19 The above figures are updated on the basis of the response given by the ECI to the queries raised by the Court on 16.04.2024. The figures given in the counter affidavit filed by the ECI are as follows: 38,156 randomly selected VVPATs have been physically counted and they have tallied with the electronic count of their control unit. Not even a single case of mismatch or transfer of vote meant for candidate A to candidate B has been detected. Counting of VVPAT slips Under Rule 56D has been allowed in 61 cases but there is not even a single case of mismatch. 20 The said discrepancy was duly rectified in terms of the protocol laid down in the Manual on EVM and VVPAT. 21 However, we refrain from making any comments on the application of Section 177 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. JUDGEMENT Dipankar Datta, J. 1. I have had the privilege of reading the opinion authored by brother Hon'ble Khanna, J. His Lordship, in my opinion, has dealt with the legal and techno-legal issues arising in connection with the challenge to the process of polling of votes through Electronic Voting Machine....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....urn to the "paper ballot system" upon discontinuance of voting through the EVMs. 4. I place on record that although such a suggestion was subsequently withdrawn by counsel in course of the proceedings that ensued following listing of the writ petitions "For Directions" on 24 April, 2024 to seek clarifications from the ECI on certain points, nothing much turns on it. The withdrawal was more of an attempt to erase the impression we, the Judges forming the Bench, were urged to form by Senior Counsel for the ECI while arguing that the petitioning association's utter lack of bona fides (in invoking this Court's writ jurisdiction Under Article 32 of the Constitution) is completely exposed thereby. I have no hesitation to accept the submission of Senior Counsel for the ECI that reverting to the "paper ballot system" of the bygone era, as suggested, reveals the real intention of the petitioning association to discredit the system of voting through the EVMs and thereby derail the electoral process that is underway, by creating unnecessary doubts in the minds of the electorate. 5. It is of immediate relevance to note that in recent years, a trend has been fast developing of cer....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....mportant enactment after the Constitution of India, is also the most effective instrument to uphold democratic and republican ideals, which are the hallmarks of our preambular promise. The RoP Act, which has established the legal framework for conducting elections, ensures that each and every citizen has a fair and equal opportunity to exercise his/her right of vote and to participate in the democratic process for electing his/her governor. The duties, functions and obligations to be performed/discharged by the ECI are ordained by the RoP Act, which are paramount and non- negotiable. Being a complete code in itself, the RoP Act reinforces the Rule of law and upholds the principles of justice, fairness and transparency. The larger the electorate, greater are the challenges associated with the elections. As it is, the ECI has an onerous responsibility to shoulder and there is absolutely no margin for error. Periodical challenges to electoral processes, which gain momentum particularly when General Elections are imminent, require the ECI as of necessity to raise robust, valid and effective defence to spurn such challenges failing which any adverse judgment by a court is bound to under....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....tch is detected even after tallying 5% of VVPAT slips, as directed in N. Chandrababu Naidu (supra), it would defy the sense of logic and reason of a prudent man to issue a Mandamus to the ECI to arrange for tallying 100% VVPAT slips on the specious ground of the Petitioners' apprehension that the EVMs could be manipulated. 12. The petitioning association has relied on the Report titled 'An inquiry into India's Election System: Is the Indian EVM and VVPAT system fit for democratic elections?' submitted by the Citizens' Commission on Elections^6, to emphasize the vulnerabilities of the current electronic voting system. The CCE Report, on a bare reading, appears to be the culmination of inputs given by domain experts. For whatever such report is worth and though counsel claimed that the efficacy of the voting system through EVMs has been doubted, the CCE Report itself concludes, inter alia, that no hacking of any EVM has been detected; what it observes is that there is no guarantee that the EVMs cannot be hacked. This, in essence captures the underlying weakness in the petitioning association's entire case, inasmuch as the only grounds for the reliefs sought....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... recorded. The dispute, in the present writ proceedings, centres around the modality of delivering the information. The Petitioners have characterised the present procedure, wherein the voter after pressing the 'blue button' and casting his/her vote can see his VVPAT slip for 7 seconds through an illuminated glass window, as inadequate for the voter to verify if his/her vote, as cast, is recorded. 16. To buttress their submission, the Petitioners have relied on the proviso to Rule 49M(3) of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961^7. The Petitioners urge that the ECI is not following the statutory mandate provided in the Election Rules. I am ad idem with the interpretation of the relevant Rule placed by Hon'ble Khanna, J. The ordainment of Rule 49M(3) is that the VVPAT slip should be momentarily visible to the voter; and it is not the requirement of the Rule that the VVPAT slip or its copy has to be handed over to the voter. Recording of the vote cast signifying the choice of the voter and its projection on the VVPAT slip, albeit for 7 (seven) seconds, is fulfilment of the voter's right of being informed that his/her vote has been duly recorded. In my considered view,....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....fest that there is in place a stringent system of checks and balances, to prevent any possibility of a miscount of votes, and for the voter to know that his/her vote has been counted. There can be no doubt that such a system, which is distinctly more satisfactory compared to the system of the yester-years, suitably satisfies the voter's right Under Article 19(1)(a) to know that his/her vote has been counted as recorded. 18. The Republic has prided itself in conducting free and fair elections for the past 70 years, the credit wherefor can largely be attributed to the ECI and the trust reposed in it by the public. While rational scepticism of the status quo is desirable in a healthy democracy, this Court cannot allow the entire process of the underway General Elections to be called into question and upended on mere apprehension and speculation of the Petitioners. The Petitioners have neither been able to demonstrate how the use of EVMs in elections violates the principle of free and fair elections; nor have they been able to establish a fundamental right to 100% VVPAT slips tallying with the votes cast. 19. In view of the foregoing discussion, the Petitioners' apprehens....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... [...] The institution of a writ proceeding need not await actual prejudice and adverse effect and consequence. An apprehension of such harm, if the same is well founded, can furnish a cause of action for moving the Court. 27. While a writ petition may be instituted, if there is a genuine and looming threat of a right being trampled upon, what is, however, clear from the aforesaid decisions is that such threat or apprehension has to be well founded and cannot be based merely on assumptions and presumptions as is found in the present set of writ petitions. 28. The mere suspicion that there may be a mismatch in votes cast through EVMs, thereby giving rise to a demand for a 100% VVPAT slips verification, is not a sufficient ground for the present set of writ petitions to be considered maintainable. To maintain these writ petitions, it ought to have been shown that there exists a tangible threat of infringement; however, that has also not been substantiated. Thus, without any evidence of malice, arbitrariness, breach of law, or a genuine threat to invasion of rights, the writ petitions could have been dismissed as not maintainable. But, considering the seriousness of the concerns....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....y reason, the order cannot be relied upon for a plea of res judicata. The answer is that it is not the order of this Court dismissing the special leave petition which is being relied upon; the plea of res judicata has been pressed on the basis of the High Court's judgment which became final after the dismissal of the special leave petition. In similar situation a Constitution Bench of this Court in Daryao v. State of U.P. [1961:INSC:116 : (1962) 1 SCR 574 : AIR 1961 SC 1457] held that where the High Court dismisses a writ petition Under Article 226 of the Constitution after hearing the matter on the merits, a subsequent petition in the Supreme Court Under Article 32 on the same facts and for the same reliefs filed by the same parties will be barred by the general principle of res judicata. The binding character of judgments of courts of competent jurisdiction is in essence a part of the Rule of law on which the administration of justice, so much emphasised by the Constitution, is founded and a judgment of the High Court Under Article 226 passed after a hearing on the merits must bind the parties till set aside in appeal as provided by the Constitution and cannot be permitted to....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ns of our democracy and ensure that the voices and choices of all citizens are valued and respected. With each pillar fortified, our democracy stands robust and resilient. 38. I conclude with the hope and trust that the system in vogue shall not fail the electorate and the mandate of the voting public shall be truly reflected in the votes cast and counted. --------------- Foot Notes 1 EVMs 2 ECI 3 Constitution 4 VVPAT 5 RoP Act 6 CCE Report 7 Election Rules ============= Document 1 PARTY WITH MAXIMUM NUMBER OF SEATS IN LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY ELECTION SINCE 2004 Andhra Pradesh 2004 2009 2014 2019 Meghalaya 2008 2013 2018 2023 INC INC TDP YSRCP INC INC INC NPEP Arunachal Pradesh 2004 2009 2014 2019 Mizoram 2008 2013 2018 2023 INC INC INC BJP INC INC MNF ZPM Assam 2006 2011 2016 2021 Nagaland 2008 2013 2018 2023 INC INC BJP BJP NPF NPF NPF NDPP Bihar 2005 2010 2015 2020 Odisha 2004 2009 2014 2019 RJD JD(U) RJD RJD BJD BJD BJD BJD Chhatti....