In an early Monday hearing, a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant handed the Election Commission a formal notice demanding a response to a petition that questions the unilateral exercise of powers by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The petition, filed by Patna resident Rakesh Kumar Singh, cites a series of 14 objections lodged by Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi over a span of ten months, covering electoral roll revisions, voter registration, and the commission’s technology rollout. The commission maintains that these objections were part of routine administrative input and that all decisions on the Schedule of the SIR exercise were made unanimously.
While the commission insists its actions were consensual, the court warned it cannot base an order solely on a newspaper report and seeks certified evidence of whether decisions were taken by majority or unanimity. Chief Justice Surya Kant added that if the court finds any instances where the law was not followed, it has the authority to undo those decisions, but only after receiving the commission’s detailed reply.
The petitioner's lawyer, Subhash Chandra, said the commission’s silence would signal tacit acceptance of the allegations, urging the court to act swiftly before the next general elections.
The Election Commission’s spokesperson, Mr. Anil Kumar, replied that the commission is preparing a comprehensive response and will submit it by Friday, after which the court will schedule a follow‑up hearing before the end of the month.