NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Election Commission of India to make public the names of voters excluded from the draft electoral rolls published after the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise in Kerala, so that affected persons can raise objections. The court also asked the poll panel to consider extending the deadline for filing objections, preferably by two weeks.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant was hearing a batch of petitions challenging the SIR exercise carried out by the Election Commission of India in Kerala. The petitioners argued that the revision process could disenfranchise a large number of voters due to technical errors and the absence of an effective grievance redressal system.
During the hearing, counsel for the petitioners submitted that nearly 24 lakh names had been deleted from the draft electoral rolls. It was argued that although voters are required to file objections against deletions, the list of excluded voters has not been made public, denying them a meaningful opportunity to challenge the removal of their names. “They have to list objections, but the list of those persons deleted is not available. Now people have to go back and file objections stating why have you deleted me… that opportunity is missing for us,” one of the lawyers said.
Taking note of the submissions, the court directed that the names of excluded voters, if not already displayed, must be exhibited at gram panchayat offices or other public offices in villages. The Bench also said the list should be uploaded on official websites to ensure wider access. “Meanwhile, having regard to the difficulty being experienced by the people at large, the ECI may consider the desirability of extending the date,” the court said.
The petitioners further pointed out that several voters were wrongly marked as deceased or shown as residing outside the State. They argued that the lack of transparency has caused serious hardship, particularly in rural areas.
The Bench was informed that the Election Commission had earlier extended the deadline for submission of enumeration forms from December 4 to December 11, and later to December 18, following the court’s observations.
The petitioners include the State of Kerala, senior political leaders such as P K Kunhalikutty, MV Govindan Master, Sunny Joseph, and the CPI State Council.