Supreme Court to Hear Plea on Voter List SIR and Election Commission Today

The Supreme Court will hear a crucial petition on Thursday filed by 13 opposition leaders, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists. The petition raises serious questions about the Election Commission's decision-making process, changes to Form 6, and the constitutional validity of decisions related to SIR.

Questions on CEC's Powers and Decision-Making Process

Opposition leaders have demanded that the Supreme Court direct the poll body to submit detailed records of points of disagreement between the Chief Election Commissioner and the other two election commissioners. The plea alleges that CEC Gyanesh Kumar took critical decisions without consulting or gaining consensus from the other commissioners.

Citing the 1995 Supreme Court Constitution Bench ruling in the T.N. Seshan case, the petitioners argued that the CEC does not possess overriding powers compared to other election commissioners, and decisions must be made collectively in accordance with the law.

Demand for Independent Audit and Interim Stay

The petition also challenges modifications made to Form 6 for voter registration without proper statutory amendments and seeks an independent committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge to audit the entire SIR process. Furthermore, the opposition has requested an interim stay on the ongoing exercise.

Issues concerning the technical audit of ECINET and ERONET databases, alleged deletion of voter names across various states, and a review of EVM operations have also been highlighted, emphasizing that free and fair elections are core components of the Constitution's basic structure.