The Supreme Court of India on Monday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought a court-monitored investigation into the allegations of widespread electoral roll manipulation. These claims, described by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi as a “huge criminal fraud,” focused on the voter lists in constituencies like Bengaluru Central and alleged “collusion between the BJP and the ECI.”
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi declined to entertain the petition, advising the petitioner to take up the matter directly with the Election Commission of India (ECI), if they deemed it appropriate.
“We have heard the petitioner’s counsel. We are not inclined to entertain the petition, which is purportedly filed in public interest. The petitioner may pursue before ECI, if so advised,” the bench stated in its brief order.
Petitioner Argued for SIT Probe and Audit
The counsel for the PIL petitioner, advocate Rohit Pandey, contended before the bench that a representation had already been made to the ECI but was not considered and no action was taken. However, the bench remained unconvinced, instructing Pandey to pursue appropriate legal remedies.
Pandey’s petition had urged the apex court to:
- Halt any further revision or finalisation of electoral rolls by the ECI until an independent audit is conducted.
- Issue directions to the ECI to ensure transparency in the process.
- Direct the ECI to publish electoral rolls in accessible, machine-readable, and OCR-compliant formats for public verification and scrutiny.
The Core Allegations
The PIL referred to Rahul Gandhi’s press conference on August 7, recalling his serious claims of “vote chori (vote theft),” which he termed “an atom bomb on our democracy.” The petition asserted that an analysis of voter rolls in a Karnataka constituency revealed large-scale manipulation.
Invoking the fundamental principle that free and fair elections are part of the Constitution’s basic structure, the petition argued that this principle “cannot be diluted or subverted by any legislative or executive action.”
The PIL also cited specific evidence of alleged irregularities, noting discrepancies in the Bengaluru Central Parliamentary Constituency (Mahadevapura Assembly Constituency) that warranted urgent judicial consideration. Furthermore, the petition highlighted a “sudden and disproportionate” increase of nearly 39 lakh new voters in Maharashtra between the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the run-up to the Assembly polls, which raised questions about the transparency of the ECI’s process.
ECI’s Previous Warning
Following Rahul Gandhi’s initial claims, the chief electoral officers of Karnataka and Maharashtra had asked him to share concrete details of the allegedly “wrong” electors along with a signed declaration. Subsequently, on August 17, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar warned Gandhi to file an affidavit affirming his allegations within seven days or risk rendering his claims baseless.
The PIL had also sought binding guidelines from the Supreme Court for the Election Commission to enhance transparency, accountability, and integrity in preparing and maintaining electoral rolls, including systems to detect and prevent duplicate or fictitious entries.