CONTEXT:

• The Supreme Court today asked 21 Opposition leaders to file within a week their reply on the Election Commission’s affidavit on their plea regarding VVPAT slips in Lok Sabha polls.
• The Opposition leaders led by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu had sought that VVPAT slips of at least 50 per cent of voting machines in each assembly constituency be checked randomly during the polls.
• A bench headed by Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi asked senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for Opposition leaders, to file the reply by next Monday. The poll panel had on Friday last sought dismissal of the petition.
• In its affidavit, the Election Commission had asserted in the apex court that the Opposition leaders have been unable to raise any ground for altering the existing system of random counting of VVPAT slips from one polling booth per assembly segment.