Supreme Court Flags Defects in INDIA Bloc Petition Against Voter Roll Revision

The Supreme Court registry flagged more than ten defects in the petition filed by Rahul Gandhi and ten other INDIA bloc leaders against the Election Commission of India. The petition asks the court to halt the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, order an independent audit of deletions, and set safeguards for eligible voters.

The defects include missing pages and a shortfall in the fee of Rs 200. Chief Justice Surya Kant has assured that related pleas on the Delhi SIR protests will be listed. On Monday opposition leaders marched toward the court; police closed several metro stations and restricted roads. Two FIRs were registered against some of the marchers.

The Election Commission has defended the revision as a routine exercise to remove ineligible names. Opposition parties say the process has deleted large numbers of legitimate voters in Delhi and other states without adequate notice or appeal. The petition seeks a stay and a transparent audit.

In a separate matter the Supreme Court stayed the trial in a defamation case against Gandhi over his “chowkidar chor hai” remark. The bench issued notice on his petition and directed the trial court not to proceed until the higher court hears the challenge.

Delhi Police have removed Jantar Mantar from the list of designated protest sites and named alternative venues. CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were detained after entering the site. The broader dispute over the Chief Election Commissioner continues in both the streets and the courts.

The registry’s defect list means the main petition cannot be heard until the gaps are cured. Lawyers for the petitioners have said they will file the corrections promptly. No date has been fixed for the next listing.

The SIR exercise has drawn criticism from civil society groups that track voter rolls. They have published figures on the scale of deletions in several constituencies. The Election Commission has not released a full public breakdown of the reasons for each deletion. The court case will test whether the process meets statutory and constitutional standards for fairness and notice.