EC has power, competence to undertake SIR of electoral rolls: Poll panel to SC
New Delhi (PTI): The Election Commission (EC) told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that it has the power and competence to undertake a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls, besides there is a constitutional duty to ensure that no foreigners are registered as voters.
The submissions were made by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi on behalf of the EC before a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi.
The bench resumed final hearings on a batch of petitions challenging the EC's decision to undertake the SIR exercise in several states, including Bihar, raising significant constitutional questions on the scope of the poll panel's powers, citizenship and the right to vote.
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Dwivedi pointed out that all key constitutional functionaries across the three organs of the State must be Indian citizens, citing provisions such as Article 124(3) of the Constitution relating to the appointment of Supreme Court and high court judges.
He said one of the key conditions for the appointment of top constitutional functionaries like the president, the vice president and the prime minister is that the person has to be an Indian citizen.
"All vital appointments ... no appointments can be made unless the person is a citizen, so our Constitution is citizen-centric predominantly," Dwivedi said.
Referring to constitutional schemes, he said, "The (constitutional) article, when it says citizens, that is something which has to be inquired by the competent authority. What should be the nature, summary etc., that is a different question.... There is a constitutional duty to ensure that on the electoral roll, there should not be any foreigners."
The poll panel is not supposed to respond to political parties' rhetoric, the senior advocate said. "I am not commenting on the political parties, as the Election Commission, our duty is that no foreigner should be there.... It is to be seen that the power is there and the competence is there," he added.
Resuming his arguments, Dwivedi posed a central constitutional question and asked "whether Article 324 of the Constitution, which vests the Election Commission with powers of superintendence, direction and control over elections, is entirely displaced by statutory provisions, or whether its application must be examined on a case-to-case basis".
He said Articles 324, 325 and 326 of the Constitution, read with section 16 of the Representation of the People Act, do not foreclose the EC's authority in the field of revision of electoral rolls.
"The field is not totally foreclosed," Dwivedi submitted, asserting that the EC retains constitutional competence to ensure the purity of the electoral rolls.
Tracing the evolution of the franchise, the lawyer took the bench through colonial-era electoral practices, beginning with the introduction of separate communal electorates in 1909 and the limited franchise under the Government of India Acts, where only about 15 per cent of the population had voting rights.
He submitted that the expansion of the franchise was a core element of India's freedom struggle.
"Not only Article 326, but the entire Constitution, when it speaks of a democratic republic, reflects an intention to create a citizen-centric polity," Dwivedi argued.
Addressing concerns that the SIR could amount to a parallel citizenship-determination exercise akin to the National Register of Citizens (NRC), he stressed that the electoral roll and the NRC serve fundamentally-different purposes.
"The NRC includes all persons, whereas the electoral roll includes only citizens above the age of 18," he said, adding that persons of unsound mind or otherwise disqualified cannot be included in the voter list.
"On the face of it, the electoral roll is not like the NRC," Dwivedi said. He maintained that Article 326 mandates that only citizens can vote and that citizenship must be acquired through a competent authority.
Even if there are 10 or thousands of foreigners on the rolls, they have to be excluded, he said, clarifying that the EC is not making political judgments but discharging its constitutional obligation.
Dwivedi would resume advancing his arguments on Thursday (January 8).
Earlier, the bench asked whether the EC is barred from conducting an inquiry in case of a doubtful citizen and if an inquisitorial process falls outside its constitutional power.
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Experience comes when you play bigger teams in bilateral series: Rashid Khan
Chennai (PTI): Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan called for more bilateral series against stronger cricketing nations after his team signed off from the T20 World Cup on a high, defeating Canada in their final group match here on Thursday.
Afghanistan played some exhilarating cricket, going down to South Africa in a gripping second Super Over after the scores were tied, a humdinger that provided one of the early thrills of the World Cup.
However, the spin-bowling stalwart said Afghanistan could make significant strides if they get regular opportunities to compete against stronger cricketing nations.
"Couple of areas to improve, with the batting, the middle order got a bit stuck against the big teams, and then with the bowling the death overs. That comes when you play the bigger teams in bilateral series," said Rashid after his team defeat Canada by 82 runs, with him returning excellent figures of 2 for 19.
The stalwart said the side had arrived well prepared for the tournament and produced some breathtaking cricket, but admitted the narrow defeat to South Africa proved costly and remained a painful setback.
"We were well-prepared (for the tournament), we played some unbelievable cricket. The game against South Africa, that really hurt everyone. We had to win one of those (first two) games and see how the tournament unfolded. We'll take some positive things from this World Cup and look forward," he said.
With head coach Jonathan Trott set to part ways with the team, Rashid described the departure as an "emotional" moment for the side.
"I think we had some wonderful times with him. Where we are now, he played a main role. It's emotional to see him leave us, but that's how life is. We wish him all the best and somewhere down the line we see him again."
Ibrahim Zadran, who was named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 95 off 56 balls, said it was satisfying to finally register a substantial score after two below-par outings.
"I enjoyed it, didn't play better cricket in first two innings, which I expect. Wanted to back my skills, really enjoyed it. Pressure was there, it's there all the time. I want to put myself in pressure situations and enjoy it," said Zadran.
"Wanted to play positive cricket, rotate strike and punish bad ball, create partnerships and this is what I have done."
