'We are not sitting in ivory towers, we are aware': SC issues notice to Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav

The Supreme Court on Thursday (Oct 15), while hearing batch of pleas connected to the October 10 protests in Delhi against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, issued notices to Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and other protestors. The court said that the justices are not sitting inside “ivory towers” and are well aware of the statements made outside the courtroom. The court also clarified that issuing notices on the pleas by Rahul Gandhi and others does not mean the court does not know their conduct. The bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and comprising Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav and others to explain their conduct on the next hearing date on Oct 26. The bench also sought response from ECI, CEC Gyanesh Kumar, Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi on Gandhi and others' plea.

Also Read: Delhi Protests: Supreme Court summons senior Delhi police officer over alleged assault on women journalists

"We will issue notice but we want to know his conduct on the next date of hearing,” the CJI said, referring to Rahul. He also said: “We are not sitting in ivory towers, we are aware of statements made outside the Court” after lawyers referred to attempts to “browbeat” the judiciary through the march. The CJI said said the court would ask Rahul to explain how crowds entered the Supreme Court premises during the demonstration.

Also Read: CJP protest: SC orders free movement across Delhi, reviews barricades, bars illegal detentions

What are these petitions?

The petition follows an Opposition march towards the Supreme Court on October 12, led by Gandhi, against the SIR exercise. Although Gandhi had planned to submit the plea himself, it was ultimately filed through lawyers as the Registry was nearing closure. The petitioners include Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader MA Baby, Communist Party of India leader D Raja, Mahua Majhi of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Supriya Sule of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar faction), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader Mohammed Basheer, Viduthalai Chirutbaigal Katchi (VCK) president Thol. Thirumavalavan, and former Jammu and Kashmir minister Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo. The plea challenged the legality of the SIR exercise and sought disclosure of the Election Commission’s records, publication of details of deleted voters, safeguards against arbitrary deletions and a mechanism for restoring names. It also sought a judicial audit of the revision process and suspension of the exercise across States pending adjudication. The apex court also issued notice on separate pleas concerning the SIR filed by AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi and Congress leader Digvijaya Singh.