A petition has been filed before the Supreme Court seeking criminal prosecution of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and an SIT inquiry into the alleged deletion of around 13 crore names from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
The plea, filed by advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi through advocate Chand Qureshi, also challenges decisions, guidelines and software modifications allegedly carried out under Kumar without the concurrence of the other two Election Commissioners. The petitioner has sought a declaration that such measures are unconstitutional and void.
The petition further seeks to have decisions relating to the SIR allegedly taken without the required concurrence declared illegal, along with restoration of the original Form 6.
Action Sought Against Election Commission Officials
Apart from Kumar, the petitioner has sought criminal prosecution of Deputy Election Commissioner Maneesh Garg and Seema Khanna, IT head of the Election Commission, alleging violations of statutory duties under the Representation of the People Act.
The plea also seeks an investigation by a Special Investigation Team into the alleged deletion of nearly 13 crore voters during the revision exercise.
Petition Refers To Reported Objections Within Election Commission
The petition refers to reports that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections on at least 14 occasions over decisions and orders concerning the SIR.
According to the plea, the reported objections related to matters including changes to Form 6, deletion and restoration of names from electoral rolls, and the handling and centralisation of electoral-roll data. Some of the decisions were allegedly taken without their knowledge or against their recommendations.
The reports also stated that objections were recorded on at least 14 occasions, including four times on a single day.
The Election Commission, however, has maintained that decisions taken during the past year were unanimous.
The petition has relied on these reported differences within the three-member Election Commission while questioning decisions allegedly taken without the concurrence of the other Commissioners.
The plea comes amid continued scrutiny of the SIR exercise, which has allegedly resulted in more than 13 crore names being removed from draft electoral rolls across 30 states and Union Territories.
