In India’s ongoing Lok Sabha polls which enters its fifth phase tomorrow, the cVIGIL App of the Election Commission has emerged as a highly effective tool in the hands of people to flag election code violations.

Since the announcement of the general elections in March, over 4.24 lakh complaints have been received through this App as of May 15. Out of these 4,23,908 complaints have been disposed of and the remaining 409 cases are under process. Nearly 89% of complaints were resolved within a 100-minute timeline, according to the EC.  

Citizens have used this App to check electoral malpractices in the use of loudspeakers beyond prescribed time or noise levels, campaigning during the ban period, placing banners or posters without permission, deployment of vehicles beyond the permitted limit, property defacement, display of firearms and intimidation and in checking inducements. 

The cVIGIL is a user-friendly and easy-to-operate application that connects vigilant citizens with the District Control Room, Returning Officers and flying squad teams. By using this app, citizens can immediately report incidents of political misconduct within minutes and without having to rush to the office of the returning officer. As soon as the complaint is sent on the cVigil app, the complainant will receive a unique ID through which the person will be able to track the complaint on their mobile.

A trinity of factors working simultaneously makes cVIGIL a success. Users capture audio, photos, or videos in real-time and a “100-minute” countdown for time-bound response to complaints is ensured. 

The App automatically enables a geo-tagging feature as soon as the user switches on their camera in the cVIGIL to report a violation. This means that flying squads can know the precise location of a reported violation, and the image captured by citizens could be used as evidence in a court of law. Citizens can also report complaints anonymously.

To prevent misuse, the cVIGIL App incorporates several safeguards, including geographical restrictions, time constraints on reporting, and mechanisms for filtering out duplicate or frivolous complaints. The app is one of the armories of Apps built by the Commission to leverage technology and facilitate voters and political parties.