New Delhi: The Supreme Court has overturned the election of the Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat Buana Lakhu in Panipat district, Haryana, after a court-monitored recount of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) declared the appellant, Mohit Kumar, as the rightful winner.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and N.K. Singh directed the Deputy Commissioner-cum-Election Officer, Panipat, to issue a notification within two days declaring Mohit Kumar elected and allowing him to assume office immediately.

The election for Sarpanch was held on November 2, 2022, in which Kuldeep Singh was declared elected. Mohit Kumar challenged the result before the Additional Civil Judge (Senior Division)-cum-Election Tribunal, which, on April 22, 2025, found grounds for recounting the votes at one booth. However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court set aside that order on July 1, prompting Kumar to move the Supreme Court.

On July 31, 2025, the apex court ordered all EVMs to be produced before its Registrar for recounting. Importantly, the Court expanded the scope beyond the disputed booth, directing a recount of all booths, with the entire process video-recorded and signed by both parties’ representatives.

The recount, supervised by the Court’s Registrar, confirmed Mohit Kumar secured 1,051 votes, against 1,000 votes for Kuldeep Singh.

This development highlights a crucial fact about EVM-based elections—while EVMs are generally considered secure and tamper-resistant, disputes often arise not about the functioning of the machines but about vote counting, booth-level discrepancies, and handling of the devices.

In this case, the apex court’s intervention underscored that EVMs can still be subject to recount verification, ensuring transparency. Unlike paper ballots, recounting EVMs requires retrieving machine-stored results under judicial supervision, which the Court ensured was carried out with videography and signed authentication.

FaceOff the fact behind EVM:

Accepting the Registrar’s recount, the bench observed:

“There being no reason to doubt the report submitted by the Registrar, especially when the entire recounting has been duly videographed and authenticated, we are satisfied that the appellant deserves to be declared as the elected Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat Buana Lakhu.”

At the same time, the Court clarified that any remaining disputes could still be taken up before the Election Tribunal. However, the Tribunal must accept the Registrar’s recount as final and conclusive regarding vote counts.

By setting aside the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s judgment, the Supreme Court reaffirmed its role as the final arbiter of electoral fairness, especially when EVM results come under judicial scrutiny.