Supreme Court Directs Bihar Legal Service Authority To Assist Excluded Voters In Filing Appeals

The Apex Court said the question of deciding appeals by voters who have been excluded after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise within the stipulated time and with a reasoned order will be considered on the next date of hearing on October 16 in response to pleas challenging the EC's exercise.

A bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said the district legal service authority will release a list of para-legal volunteers for assisting the excluded voters by filing appeals and ensuring that they have detailed orders of their name's rejection.

"We want everyone to be given a fair chance to appeal and they should have detailed orders with them on why their names have been excluded. It should not be a one-line cryptic order," the bench said.

At the outset, a drama unfolded in the Apex Court when Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi pointed out that the petitioner NGO, 'Association for Democratic Reforms', which challenged the Bihar SIR exercise, has given fake details of a person, who claimed that his name had been excluded from the final list.

Dwivedi pointed out that the name of the person referred to in the NGO's affidavit did not feature in the draft roll and the details he had given were of some woman.

The bench, after perusing the details, said, "We wonder if such a person even exists."

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, said that the details have been given to him by a very responsible person. The name of the elector, who claimed that his name did not feature in the final electoral roll of Bihar, can be ascertained by the district legal service authority.

The bench expressed annoyance, saying this was not expected and clarified that it may pass some remarks.

Dwivedi said that the NGO and other petitioner Yogendra Yadav have filed their affidavits till late afternoon and the poll panel needs to file its response.

With PTI Inputs