The CCTV and video recordings from the polling stations in Delhi during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections have been destroyed and are no longer in the custody of District Election Officers (DEOs), the Election Commission has informed the Delhi High Court.
The poll panel said the footage was discarded in accordance with its revised guidelines issued on May 30, 2025.
The Commission’s submission came during the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Advocate Mehmood Pracha, who had requested the preservation of all video and CCTV material related to the election process.
"The footage sought by the petitioner is no longer available with the DEOs and has already been destroyed," Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi, representing the Commission, said.
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The ECI's revised guidelines mandate that data like CCTV visuals, webcasting content and photographs of the election process need to be retained only for 45 days unless a petition is filed contesting the result.
The updated instructions were aimed at curbing the misuse of polling visuals on social media by individuals not involved in the electoral process, the ECI’s counsel told the high court.
Pracha contested the argument and said the poll body should have preserved the footage since his petition was already pending before the court.
The petitioner also cited the ‘Handbook for Returning Officer, 2023’, which maintains that video recordings need to be preserved when any election-related complaint or legal proceeding is underway.
Pracha said the ECI had issued the fresh instructions solely to defeat his petition.
Justice Mini Pushkarna, after hearing both sides, declined to issue any interim order and scheduled the next hearing for February 13, 2026.
