Election Commission’s C-Vigil app disposes off 99 per cent cases out of over 79000 violations reported
C-Vigil is part of ECI’s steps to leverage digital tech to ensure free, fair
and inducement free polls
These complaints have been received since announcement of
General Elections
The cVIGIL
app of Election Commission of India has become an effective tool in the hands
of people to flag election code violations. Since the announcement of General
Elections 2024, over 79,000 complaints have been received as of today. Over 99%
complaints have been resolved and close to 89% of these complaints have been
resolved within 100 minutes. Speed and transparency are the cornerstones of
cVIGIL app.
More than 58,500 complaints (73% of the total) received
are against illegal hoardings and banners. More than 1400 complaints
received pertain to money, gifts and liquor distribution. Close to 3% of the
complaints (2454) pertain to defacement of property Out of the 535 complaints
received for display of firearms and intimidation, 529 have already been
resolved. 1000 complaints reported were for campaigning beyond the prohibited
period including use of speakers beyond permitted time.
cVIGIL app marks a significant leap forward in electoral
oversight and reducing campaign clutter. It may be recalled that in the press
conference for the announcement of the General Elections 2024, Chief Election
Commissioner Rajiv Kumar had urged citizens to be vigilant and use the app
to report model code of conduct violations and distribution of any kind of
inducements to voters.
cVigil is
user-friendly and easy to operate application, which connects vigilant citizens
with the District Control Room, Returning Officer and Flying Squads Teams. By
using this app, the citizens can immediately report on 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 audios, 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
could know the precise location of a reported violation, and the image captured
by citizens could be used as evidence in the court of law. Citizens can also
report complaints anonymously.
The app is one amongst the armoury of Apps built by the
Commission to leverage technology and facilitate voters and political parties.