Bombay High Court to hear plea against CEC Gyanesh Kumar on October 22, says no urgency

The Kolhapur Circuit Bench of the Bombay High Court on Monday questioned the urgency for hearing a petition seeking restoration of every voter deleted from the electoral rolls in Maharashtra during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). [Prathamesh Govankar & Ors v. Election Commission of India & Ors].Advocate Asim Sarode for the petitioner sought hearing either today or tomorrow, citing urgency..However, the Bench of Justices Sharmila Deshmukh and Neeraj Dhote questioned why the petition ought to be heard so urgently. "What is urgent about it?".Sarode could not establish the urgency. Accordingly, the Bench listed the petition for October 22..The Bench also questioned what private right was being invoked against the Election Commission of India (ECI)."Is it a PIL? Since it's a writ petition, what private right do you have against the Election Commission?" the bench asked. "We have filed a writ petition on behalf of the citizens who are voters who feel their rights are being infringed," Sarode responded. .The plea has challenged the 14 administrative orders passed by the ECI and Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over the last 10 months. The plea by three Maharashtra residents relies on reports by Indian Express that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objected to these decisions on 14 occasions. According to the plea, the internal objections concerned voter registration, deletions, software processes and the functioning of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs)..The petitioners contend that the Election Commission failed to comply with Section 18 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023. They allege that CEC Kumar acted unilaterally and failed to discharge his duties faithfully. The plea also challenges July amendments to Form 6. .The petitioners have also sought for a stay on the SIR process in Maharashtra. They have sought postponement of the upcoming assembly elections in SIR-affected states until legally compliant electoral rolls are finalized. Till then, they have sought for directions to constitute a judicial committee, headed by a retired High Court Judge, to probe data deletions and software blockages.