‘Mass Disenfranchisement’ Looms Over Bihar Voters In ECI’s Controversial Roll Revision
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Yogendra Yadav has filed a PIL within the Supreme Court docket towards the ECI’s Bihar voter checklist revision, calling it “arbitrary and unjust.”
New Delhi: Nicely-known political analyst and election reform activist Yogendra Yadav has approached the Supreme Court docket with a Public Curiosity Litigation (PIL) difficult the current transfer by the Election Fee of India (ECI) to hold out a “Particular Intensive Revision” (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar.
He has raised severe issues that this course of might lead to numerous voters dropping their proper to vote simply earlier than the upcoming Meeting elections within the state.
The PIL has been filed below Article 32 of the Structure, which supplies residents the suitable to maneuver the Supreme Court docket for enforcement of their basic rights.
Yadav is asking the Court docket to instantly cease the ECI’s order, calling it
“manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, and violative of electoral legal guidelines.”
In response to him, this step by the ECI might unfairly take away the names of lakhs and even crores of individuals—notably girls, migrant labourers, daily-wage earners, and members of backward and marginalised communities—from the electoral rolls.
In his petition, Yogendra Yadav highlights that the ECI’s order dated June 24 requires all voters—even those that are already registered—to as soon as once more submit identification paperwork.
Nonetheless, solely a hard and fast checklist of 11 paperwork are being accepted, and generally used proofs resembling Aadhaar playing cards, ration playing cards, and MGNREGA job playing cards are usually not included.
Yadav claims that is extremely problematic, particularly in rural and poor areas, as many individuals could not have entry to the restricted paperwork being demanded.
If they’re unable to submit these by the July 25 deadline, their names might be routinely deleted from the voters’ checklist.
Yadav argues that this sort of deletion, with out correct discover or an opportunity to elucidate, is totally unfair and goes towards the essential precept of pure justice.
He provides that the method doesn’t even permit voters to defend themselves or be heard earlier than being faraway from the rolls.
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This, he says, violates Part 22 of the Illustration of the Folks Act, 1950 and Rule 21-A of the Registration of Electors Guidelines, 1960. Each these legal guidelines require correct safeguards earlier than eradicating any identify from the electoral rolls.
The petition additionally states that this transfer violates the Structure—particularly Articles 14 and 15, which shield the suitable to equality and prohibit discrimination, and Article 326, which ensures the suitable to vote.
In response to Yadav,
“the SIR discriminates towards weak teams and infringes upon the basic proper to vote.”
He additionally factors out the sensible issues in finishing up such an enormous verification drive throughout Bihar’s monsoon season.
The state has practically 7.89 crore voters, and lots of of them don’t possess formal paperwork like start certificates or land possession data. This makes the duty even more durable and extra unfair for poor households.
To additional assist his argument, Yadav refers to 2 vital judgments by the Supreme Court docket. One is the KS Puttaswamy judgment of 2017, which recognised the suitable to privateness as a basic proper.
The opposite is the 1995 judgment in Lal Babu Hussein’s case, which acknowledged that the suitable to vote of a registered voter shouldn’t be disturbed casually and should be protected with nice care.
He depends on these rulings to argue that registered voters shouldn’t be pressured to re-prove their id with out a strong cause. He says the precept of continuity in voter registration should be upheld.
The Supreme Court docket is predicted to listen to the matter quickly and can resolve whether or not the Election Fee’s order ought to be paused or allowed to proceed.
In abstract, Yogendra Yadav has requested the Court docket to urgently intervene to guard the rights of Bihar’s voters, saying the ECI’s revision course of is
“manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, and violative of electoral legal guidelines.”
He warns that if the present order shouldn’t be stopped,
“hundreds of thousands of voters—particularly girls, daily-wage staff, migrants, and marginalised communities—[will be] struck off the rolls unjustly.”
He has strongly criticised the ECI for not accepting paperwork like Aadhaar, ration playing cards, and MGNREGA playing cards, calling this choice unfair.
“Failure to conform by the July 25 deadline,”
the petition says,
“will lead to automated deletion of names with out correct discover or listening to—violating the ideas of pure justice.”
It concludes that
“the SIR discriminates towards weak teams and infringes upon the basic proper to vote.”
Click Here to Read Previous Reports on Disenfranchisement
