Delhi SIR: Delhi HC says booth level agents of political parties liable only for elector details they can verify

The Delhi High Court on Thursday held that Booth Level Agents (BLAs) appointed by political parties during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls can be made liable only for the information that they can verify and not for all the particulars contained in the enumeration and declarations forms by the elector.."In the opinion of this court, the BLA can only be made liable in terms of Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act for information that can be verified by the BLA, that is, the photograph in the enumeration form matches the identity of the elector,” Justice Amit Bansal ruled. A detailed copy of the order is awaited. .The High Court passed the order on a plea filed by Delhi Congress leaders challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) requirement that BLAs of recognised political parties furnish personal undertakings certifying that they have verified particulars contained in enumeration forms during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president and former MLA Devender Yadav DPCC Booth Management Committee chairman Rajesh Kumar Garg had also sought directions to provide recognised political parties with printed and soft copies of the 2002 electoral rolls and the Frozen Photo Electoral Roll before the SIR is implemented in Delhi..Yadav and Garg challenged Clause 9(d)(iv) of the ECI's guidelines dated June 24, 2025, to the extent it requires BLAs to submit an undertaking stating that they have personally verified the particulars in application forms and are satisfied about their correctness. They also challenged a subsequent communication dated April 27, 2026, issued by the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi reiterating the requirement.They contended that verification of electoral particulars is a statutory function entrusted to Booth Level Officers (BLOs), Assistant Electoral Registration Officers and Electoral Registration Officers, and cannot be shifted to political party representatives through an administrative instruction.Further, they argued that the requirement lacks statutory backing under the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, and amounts to an unlawful delegation of a statutory function to private individuals. On the electoral rolls, the petitioners contended that access to the 2002 roll and Frozen Photo Electoral Roll is necessary for BLAs to identify discrepancies, duplicate or shifted electors and other irregularities during the SIR process. They argued that merely hosting the 2002 rolls on the CEO Delhi website does not provide effective access, given practical difficulties involving downloading, network congestion and internet connectivity.