Today, On 6th December, Supreme Court rescheduled the Special Intensive Revision hearing for tomorrow. Senior Advocate Dwivedi highlighted the Election Commission’s powers and citizen-centric constitutional provisions, while CJI noted, “If we are able to take up at 12 then we will continue till lunch.”
New Delhi: The Supreme Court heard the important case on the validity of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process that is happening in multiple states.
During the hearing, Senior Advocate Dwivedi placed several constitutional points before the Bench, focusing on the powers of the Election Commission of India and the citizen-centric nature of the Constitution.
He began by asking,
“Is Article 324 completely ousted, or is this an issue that must be examined on a case by case basis?”
He explained that in some situations, the Court may find that Parliament has not fully closed the door. He said that even if Parliament has created a statutory framework, the real question is how far the law occupies the field.
Dwivedi discussed the historical background of election laws.
He said,
“The first major issue in elections arose in 1909 with the introduction of separate electorates on a communal basis.”
He added that the second problem was the extremely restricted franchise under the Government of India scheme, where only about 15% of the population had voting rights. According to him, the freedom movement placed great emphasis on expanding the right to vote.
He argued that,
“Not only Article 326, but the Constitution as a whole reflects a clear emphasis on citizenship.”
He noted that by declaring India a democratic republic, the framers wanted a citizen-centric system.
He said that many constitutional provisions show that important posts across all three branches of the State must be held by Indian citizens.
He also added,
“Section 9 does not completely exclude the Election Commission of India.”
Dwivedi further submitted,
“Even in matters relating to Parliament, it is the opinion of the ECI that ultimately attains finality, even where the issue is similar to one arising under Section 9 of the Representation of the People Act.”
He referred to Article 124(3), which deals with the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts, and pointed out that citizenship is a mandatory requirement for these roles. He said that this shows the Constitution is mainly citizen-focused.
He explained the meaning of the word citizens in Article 326.
He said,
“When Article 326 refers to ‘citizens,’ that status must be acquired from a competent authority.”
He clarified that whether the process is summary or detailed is a separate matter, but the constitutional requirement is that only citizens must be included in the electoral roll.
He stressed,
“Even if it is one, ten, or thousands of foreigners, they must be excluded.”
Dwivedi also made a comparison between two registers.
He said,
“NRC register is where all the citizens are included but in electoral roll there are only citizens above 18 and people of unsound mind are not included.”
Before concluding, he suggested scheduling options and said,
“Your Lords can take up day after tomorrow or next week.”
Chief Justice of India replied that the Bench may be able to take up the matter the next day depending on the schedule.
Also Read: Why No SIR in Assam? Supreme Court Petition Challenges ECI Decision
He said,
“If we are able to take up at 12 then we will continue till lunch.”
The Court has decided that the case will be taken up tomorrow.
A Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a thorough process conducted by the Election Commission of India to update and clean up the electoral rolls in a state or Union Territory. During an SIR, every eligible voter’s details are verified, and efforts are made to remove duplicate, fake, or incorrect entries.
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