Om Prakash Rawat, who will take over as the chief election commissioner from Achal Kumar Joti on Tuesday, told The Economic Times on Sunday that he supports the linking of Aadhaar numbers to voters’ identity cards.
“Biometrics should establish the identity before a voter enters a polling booth and gets access to an electronic voting machine,” Rawat said. “The identification will then be foolproof.”
Rawat made the statement even as the Supreme Court is hearing petitions against the constitutional validity of the Aadhaar scheme.
However, he clarified that he did not want any changes made to the electronic voting machines to integrate the Aadhaar linking feature. “The electronic voting machine must remain a standalone machine with no connection to any other device or the internet,” he said.
In addition to linking Aadhaar with voter IDs, he said the Election Commission was considering whether migrants could be allowed to vote in the state where they reside, like the armed forces.
“As chief election commissioner, my priority will be to have a continuity of delivering free, fair and credible elections through the engagement of all stakeholders and to build a consensus on poll reforms,” the former Indian Administrative Service officer said.
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