Supreme Court Issues Notices to Government and Election Commission
India's supreme court on Monday issued notices to Narendra Modi's government, the Election Commission of India and its head, Gyanesh Kumar, demanding answers about a controversial voter roll revision that has removed tens of millions of names and sparked mass protests. The court said it expected all parties to respond in a clear and transparent manner. The two petitions taken up alleged that the ECI's credibility is now in question and called for an independent inquiry into Kumar's decisions regarding the special intensive revision (SIR) process. Another hearing is scheduled for next week.[S1]
The supreme court also contradicted the ECI's claim that it had approved modifications to Form 6, the voter registration form, according to reports. The court said it never approved the changes and sought records on who modified the form. This development adds to the scrutiny of the ECI's handling of the SIR process.[S4][S5]
Mass Protests and Allegations of Targeted Deletions
In recent days, protests have broken out throughout India, with opposition parties, student organisations and the youth-led Cockroach movement calling for Kumar to step down. They say he presided over a direct assault on democracy via the SIR process, which has resulted in 130 million names being struck off the voter list. Hundreds were held in Delhi when they attempted to demonstrate at the weekend. The ECI insists the operation merely purges duplicate, deceased and ineligible entries, along with illegal infiltrators. Yet many residents of Delhi, Bihar and West Bengal report being wrongly deprived of their vote and struggling to restore it. Critics allege the revision disproportionately affects minorities, including Muslims, who typically do not support Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata party (BJP).[S1]
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The Congress-led opposition bloc has claimed the ECI is working in lockstep with the government over what it calls vote chori, or cheating. Modi headed the panel that selected Kumar to lead the ECI. Although the SIR started last year, broad public anger only flared recently, after the Indian Express newspaper published a report exposing numerous irregularities in the process that had been raised in more than a dozen internal objections.[S1]
Youth Movement and Police Crackdown
Fresh controversies surrounding the ECI have pushed India's youth back onto the streets in protest, reflecting growing discontent with the Modi government. The Cockroach Janata party (CJP), whose large-scale unrest last summer forced the education minister's resignation, has mobilised once more and demanded Kumar step down. Thousands of CJP backers marched in Mumbai last Friday, with another demonstration held in Delhi on Saturday. Delhi police have drawn criticism for their forceful tactics in blocking student groups from protesting in the capital's centre. Officers were accused of sexually assaulting three journalists during the weekend protests, and hundreds of young people were put onto police buses. Delhi police said it is investigating the assault allegations.[S1]
