Chennai, Sep 16 (NationPress) The Madras High Court has demanded a comprehensive explanation from the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding a public interest litigation (PIL) that claims numerous polling stations and official websites are not accessible to individuals with disabilities, thus violating their fundamental right to vote.

The First Division Bench, consisting of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G. Arul Murugan, instructed ECI standing counsel Niranjan Rajagopalan to submit a response within four weeks.

The judges emphasized that the petition should not be perceived as an adversarial conflict but rather as a quest for equality in the electoral process.

The PIL was filed by cross-disability rights advocate Vaishnavi Jayakumar, who asserted that despite multiple reminders and legal obligations, accessibility remains insufficient. Her attorney, S. Tanvi, provided photographs depicting polling stations that have steps but lack ramps.

While reviewing the images, the Bench questioned how individuals with disabilities could be expected to cast their votes under such conditions.

“You (ECI) may have initiated actions towards inclusivity, but these physical obstacles must be entirely eliminated,” remarked Chief Justice Shrivastava.

In her affidavit, Jayakumar referenced Section 11 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, which stipulates that all polling stations must be fully accessible and all election-related materials made simpler for individuals with disabilities.

She pointed out that although the Act has been operational for over seven years, full compliance has not been achieved.

Polling booths still lack essential facilities such as ramps, and election websites are not user-friendly for disabled individuals, she contended.

The petition specifically noted that the ECI’s websites -- www.eci.gov.in, https://electoralsearch.eci.gov.in, https://voters.eci.gov.in, and officials.eci.gov.in -- depend solely on image-based CAPTCHA, making it difficult for many visually impaired individuals to access them. The petition advocated for the introduction of multi-modal CAPTCHA, comprising audio, text, logic, and OTP-based alternatives.

Jayakumar urged the Commission to facilitate barrier-free elections through simple solutions such as providing candidate information in accessible online formats and ensuring ramps at every polling station.

The Bench directed the ECI to thoroughly address these issues and clarify the specific measures it intends to implement. The matter has been scheduled for further hearing after the Commission submits its reply.