Restore 5 Goa voter names deleted: Bombay HC orders ECI
What's the story
The Bombay High Court has ordered the Election Commission of India (ECI) to restore the names of five members of a family who were removed from the final voter list during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Goa. The court was hearing a petition filed by the Salgaonkar family, whose names were deleted despite submitting Form 8 for address change. The ECI had maintained that SIR guidelines mandate a voter to submit a pre-filled enumeration along with Form 8.
Legal proceedings
Court rejects ECI's argument
When they refused to submit the enumeration form, they were asked to fill in a Form 6, meant for new inclusion in the voter list.
The court rejected this argument, stating that citizens shouldn't be compelled to make false declarations if they have changed their residence and that they cannot be asked to mandatorily submit the enumeration forms.
Voter rights
Court questions why citizens can't submit Form 8 directly
Justice Valmiki Menezes asked, "If a voter comes to you with Form 8...you just cannot tell that person that look your name isn't included in the draft roll, now you will have to fill in Form 6."
"Your enumeration form basically has a declaration that a person continues to live in the address as mentioned in the existing voters list."
The court questioned why citizens can't directly submit Form 8 instead of being forced to submit a pre-filled enumeration form.
Restoration order
No citizen should be forced to sign a false declaration
The court also pointed out that Rule 12 allows for objections and why a citizen can't submit Form 8 directly.
"....why should that person make a false declaration by submitting that pre-filled enumeration form? It will be a false declaration because under the said enumeration form, there is a declaration that X person continues to live here... The point is you cannot compel someone to make such a false declaration?" the bench remarked.
ECI
Restore names within 10 days: Court
The bench ordered that the names be restored within 10 days.
"We have rejected the contention of the ECI that the hearing in the present plea be deferred as the issue of SIR is pending before the Supreme Court.... This is not pertaining to SIR... We therefore ordered the BLO of Santacruz Constituency (in Goa) to add the names of the petitioners within a period of 10 days from today," the bench ordered.