Rahul Gandhi Plea Delayed by Supreme Court Filing Defects
A Supreme Court petition filed by Rahul Gandhi and other INDIA bloc leaders challenging the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls was not listed for hearing on October 13 after the Court registry flagged routine procedural defects in the filing.
Supreme Court Registry Flags 14 Filing Defects
The petition, filed by Rahul Gandhi and 10 other Opposition leaders, seeks judicial scrutiny of alleged irregularities in the electoral roll revision process and decisions taken by the Election Commission.
The Supreme Court registry identified 14 procedural defects that must be corrected before the petition can be formally cleared for listing.
These include missing or illegible documents, incomplete authorisation papers for several petitioners and an unclear copy of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s identity card.
₹220 Court Fee Shortfall Among Objections
The registry also flagged a ₹220 shortfall in the required court fee.
Nine of the 11 petitioners were reportedly yet to submit complete vakalatnamas or authorisation documents permitting lawyers to represent them before the Court.
Such objections are part of the Supreme Court’s routine scrutiny process and do not amount to a judicial rejection of the petition.
Once the defects are corrected, the filing can be resubmitted for scrutiny and subsequent listing.
Opposition Seeks Audit of SIR Voter Deletions
The petition seeks an independent examination of voter deletions and modifications made during the Special Intensive Revision process.
The Opposition has also sought greater disclosure of Election Commission records, safeguards against arbitrary voter deletions and an independent committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge to examine the exercise.
The Election Commission has rejected allegations that the revision process was politically manipulated.
