First randomisation of EVMs, VVPAT units for Madurantakam, Dharapuram bypolls on September 12

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The Election Commission of India (EC) has scheduled on Saturday (September 12, 2026) the first randomisation of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) units to be used in Madurantakam and Dharapuram byelections.

The byelections to the two Assembly segments will be held on October 6. According to an official release, the first randomisation of EVMs and VVPAT units will be done through the EVM Management System (EMS) by the District Election Officer concerned, in the presence of the representatives of recognised national and State parties.

After first randomisation is completed, lists of EVMs and VVPATs allocated constituency-wise will be shared with all recognised national and State parties, and these devices will be provided to the Returning Officers/Assistant Returning Officers concerned for use in elections, the release said.

These EVMs and VVPATs will be stored in the respective Assembly strongroom in the presence of the representatives of all the recognised national and State parties. After finalisation of the list of contesting candidates, the list of these devices will be shared to all the contesting candidates also, the release added.

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