Supreme Court Comments On SIR Deadline Extension Plea
- Supreme Court examines SIR petitions by West Bengal and Tamil Nadu
- Apex Court says it may direct ECI to extend SIR draft list deadline
Hyderabad: The Supreme Court made important observations on the petitions filed by the States of West Bengal and Tamil Nadu concerning the Special Intensive Revision. The petitioners alleged delays and raised doubts about completing the SIR exercise on time. The Court said it can direct the Election Commission of India to extend the deadline for the publication of the draft voter list if sufficient evidence is placed before it.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi heard the petitions filed by the West Bengal Congress Committee, the DMK in Tamil Nadu and other parties. They questioned the constitutional validity of the SIR process. They also argued that the timeline was too short. According to them, the amendment in the middle of the rainy and festive periods could lead to the removal of lakhs of eligible voters from the electoral rolls. They said this situation raised serious concerns for many citizens.
Meanwhile, senior counsel appearing for the Election Commission of India told the Court that the ECI has the authority to conduct elections and will correct any procedural issues. However, the petitioners told the bench that the SIR lacked transparency. They said details of voters removed from the rolls had not been made public. They asked the Court to examine the process closely to protect voters’ rights.
Responding to these arguments, the Supreme Court stayed further hearings on similar petitions pending in the high courts of the two states. The bench issued notices to the ECI to file a detailed counter. It gave the Commission two weeks to submit its stand. The Court also said it will not hesitate to order an extension of the draft publication deadline if strong evidence is presented. The next hearing will be held on December 9.
The observations highlight the Supreme Court’s focus on transparency and fairness in updating the electoral rolls through the nationwide Special Intensive Revision.
Now you can get the latest stories from Indtoday on Telegram every day. Click the link to subscribe. Click to follow Indtoday’s Facebook page, Twitter, and Instagram. For all the latest Hyderabad News updates
