1 hr ago
Supreme Court Weighs Excluded Voters’ Access to Bengal Civic Polls
Some people in Bengal were left off the voter lists during a review.
They want to know if they can vote in the upcoming city elections in Kolkata and Howrah.
The Supreme Court said it will hear the issue on October 16.
The elections are planned for late November.
There are about 170,000 appeals waiting in those two cities, according to an application citing Election Commission affidavits.
The judges said the tribunals handling the appeals face several problems, including software glitches.
They discussed handling requests to add voters before requests to remove names.
The court has not yet decided whether the excluded voters will be allowed to vote.
The Supreme Court said it will hear the Bengal electoral-roll revision case on October 16.
The petition concerns whether voters excluded during the Special Intensive Revision can vote in Kolkata and Howrah municipal elections.
Those elections are scheduled for late November, with the electoral process expected to finish by December 7.
An application citing Election Commission affidavits says 170,000 appeals are pending in Kolkata and Howrah.
The court flagged tribunal and software difficulties and discussed prioritising appeals seeking inclusion over deletion requests.
- Who
- Voters excluded during Bengal’s Special Intensive Revision, petitioners, and the Supreme Court.
- What
- The court is considering a plea about whether excluded voters can vote in the Kolkata and Howrah municipal elections.
- Where
- West Bengal, including Kolkata and Howrah.
- When
- The court said it will hear the case on October 16; the elections are scheduled for late November.
- Why
- Petitioners seek faster decisions on pending appeals so affected voters can participate in the civic polls.
Petitioners
Court’s considerations
Speeding up pending appeals
Petitioners
Advocate Prashant Bhushan and senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan urged expeditious disposal so excluded voters could vote in the civic elections.
Court’s considerations
The judges acknowledged difficulties facing the tribunals and discussed prioritising appeals seeking inclusion, while noting software problems.
Order of appeals
Petitioners
Petitioners emphasized the need to resolve pending cases affecting voters’ ability to participate.
Court’s considerations
The Chief Justice said appeals seeking deletion of voters could be pushed back and taken up later than appeals seeking inclusion.
Key facts
- Next hearing
- October 16
- Elections at issue
- Kolkata and Howrah municipal corporation elections
- Expected election timing
- Late November
- Electoral process deadline
- December 7
- Pending appeals
- About 170,000 in Kolkata and Howrah, according to an application citing Election Commission affidavits
- Court’s proposed priority
- Consider appeals seeking inclusion before appeals seeking deletion
- Petitioners’ claim
- They said 93% of appeals decided by SIR tribunals so far have been allowed
Quotes
Surya Kant
Chief Justice of India and member of the Supreme Court bench hearing the case.
“We are trying to sort out these problems like the bulk of the appeals are of those who are seeking deletion of names of voters. We will be asking the tribunals to push back those appeals seeking deletion of names and decide first those which seek inclusion.”
telegraphindia.com
“There are two priorities we are contemplating. One is that appeals filed by persons seeking deletion of voters can be pushed back and taken up at the last stage.”
telegraphindia.com
Sources
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