New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Election Commission (ECI) to investigate alleged irregularities in the large number of Form 7 applications submitted for deletion from the voter list during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) campaign in Uttar Pradesh.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana asked the petitioners to provide details of cases where complaints of alleged irregularities have not been addressed. The bench directed the Election Commission to investigate these complaints, take necessary corrective steps, and submit an action taken report.
During the hearing, the petitioners alleged that a large number of Form 7 applications were submitted in Uttar Pradesh with the intention of removing the names of voters belonging to a particular community from the voter list. Citing the directives to file FIRs in similar cases in Telangana and Karnataka, he said that the lack of effective action in Uttar Pradesh has emboldened those submitting such applications.
What did the Election Commission say on the allegations?
Senior advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, representing the Election Commission, stated that a large number of Form 7 applications were indeed received, but the officials’ investigation revealed irregularities in them. He stated that no voter’s name was removed from the voter list based on these applications.
He also stated that the relevant officials had investigated, investigated, and cross-verified the complaints. During this process, some of the allegations were found to be false. The senior advocate stated that where sufficient material exists to support the allegations, the parties concerned can file a formal complaint so that the Election Commission can investigate the matter and take appropriate action.
Election Commission should take action if irregularities are found: Supreme Court
After hearing arguments from both sides, the Supreme Court said that the Election Commission should examine the relevant material and take appropriate action wherever irregularities are proven.
This hearing comes amid allegations regarding the SIR process in Uttar Pradesh.
Earlier, the state Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office had dismissed claims that the ECI’s ERONET software had automatically generated 85,854 Form 7 applications without providing reasons for the deletion of voters’ names.
The CEO’s office clarified that a process of notice, hearing, investigation, and filing of an order is followed before any name is removed from the electoral roll. The office termed these allegations as misleading.