The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a plea seeking a direction to the authorities, including the Election Commission of India (ECI), to ensure that around 18,000 persons displaced due to the ethnic violence in Manipur get to exercise their right to vote in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The plea was filed by Naulak Khamsuanthang against the ECI.
A three-judge bench, led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, refused to entertain Khamsuanthang's plea.
"Interference of this court, particularly at this belated stage, would cause substantial impediments in the conduct of the ensuing general elections of the Lok Sabha for Manipur," the top court said and refused to entertain Khamsuanthang's plea.
Polling for the two Lok Sabha seats of Manipur will be held in two phases on April 19 and 26 respectively.
On April 9, the plea was filed in SC seeks protection of voting rights of 18,000 displaced Manipur residents.
The petition claimed that the brutal violence in the state sadly forced more than 15,000 people out out of their homes and they are currently residing out of duress in other states.
The plea of Khamsuanthang, said that there was no proper arrangement made to ensure that such Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) cast their votes in the upcoming elections.
"Democracy is an essential feature of Constitution, yet no recognition of fundamental right to them. The ECI has turned a blind eye towards the state of tens of thousands of Kuki-Zo-Hmar IDPs who are going to be disenfranchised without any arrangements for the exercise of their voting rights," the plea said.
The Supreme Court is currently seized of a batch of pleas related to the violence in Manipur.
