Election Commission of India refutes unilateral action claims against CEC Gyanesh Kumar in Supreme Court
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has denied allegations that Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar acted unilaterally on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. In a counter affidavit to the Supreme Court, the ECI stated that all three SIR orders were unanimous decisions and that the petition against Kumar is based solely on a news report. The Commission addressed concerns about its internal decision-making process, alleged changes to voter enrollment forms, deletion of names, and the functioning of its electoral databases. The ECI clarified its process for handling files and addressed the July 28 work allocation order. It also clarified that the SIR declaration is a separate document and that only the Centre can amend Form 6. The Commission assured that voters who are not mapped need not attend hearings and that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will collect documents from their homes. Hearings will be held only in exceptional cases, preferably online. On ECINet, the Commission stated that no name is added or deleted except by order of the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO). A committee with experts from IIT and IISc has been set up to check compliance.
Key facts
- The ECI refuted allegations that CEC Gyanesh Kumar acted unilaterally on the SIR of electoral rolls.
- All three SIR orders were unanimous decisions among ECI members.
- The petition against Kumar is based solely on a news report.
- The ECI clarified its process for handling files and addressed the July 28 work allocation order.