&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "'A negation of the constitutional order': Supreme Court judge Ujjal Bhuyan on SIR")
Supreme Court judge Ujjal Bhuyan has come down heavily on special intensive revision (SIR) that has resulted in large-scale deletion of names from voter lists across states. Speaking at the moot court valedictory function at Nalsar, Hyderabad on Sunday Bhuyan said that any process that takes away the voting rights of a huge number of Indian citizens "strike at the heart of the Constitution".
"If any process results in disenfranchising millions and millions of Indian citizens -- making them second-class citizens in their own country in the sense of being citizens without voting rights -- such a process is intrinsically arbitrary. No amount of whataboutery can justify it... It strikes at the very heart of the Constitution," he said.
He termed SIR an exercise that violates Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to equality, and Article 326, which provides for universal adult suffrage.
"I would go to the extent of saying that it is a negation of the constitutional order which we have adopted under the Constitution of India," added the Supreme Court judge.
Justice Bhuyan further said that the right to vote was central to the holding of free and fair elections.
“Except in the case of a dead voter, the name of a voter once enlisted in the electoral roll cannot be deleted without notice and hearing,” he added.
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Protests across country against SIR
Meanwhile, protests have erupted against SIR across the country. On Sunday (Sept 4) thousands have gathered at Mumbai's Shivaji Park, demanding the resignation of CEC, Gyanesh Kumar.
Several prominent names from the film and music industry also showed up at the protest. Actor Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi, and singer Vishal Dadlani were among those in attendance.
Protests also erupted in the national capital. Leaders from the Aam Aadmi Party and several student organisations attempted to stage a protest at Jantar Mantar, but were detained by the Delhi Police.
In Patna, India bloc allies, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the CPI(ML) also held a protest.
The protests follow an investigative report which highlighted an unprecedented rupture inside the Election Commission, with two Election Commissioners recording multiple objections over key SIR-related decisions.
Protesters argue that the controversial exercise has been designed to delete a large number of genuine voters from electoral rolls.
The CJP has accused the Chief Election Commissioner of treason and is pressing for his resignation. The Mumbai protest is part of a wider CJP campaign against SIR. The party plans to take the agitation to Goa, Bengaluru and Kolkata.
