In a country where millions lack proper documents, the burden of proving identity cannot be shifted onto the people, senior Supreme Court advocate Prashant
Bhushan said at a talk on “Safeguarding Electoral Integrity in the Context of SIR” on Saturday.
“In a country where millions possess no formal documentation due to poverty or displacement, the burden cannot unfairly shift onto the citizen,” he said.
“Electoral revision must enhance integrity — not produce what I call a ‘logical disruption’ of democracy, where procedure overtakes justice. That is precisely why challenges to such processes are before the Supreme Court, because the right to vote cannot be subjected to administrative opacity without constitutional scrutiny,” Bhushan said.
The talk, themed “My Vote, My Right”, was organised by the United Interfaith Foundation, a forum for interfaith dialogue.
The preliminary rolls after the SIR were published on Saturday, showing nearly 5.25 lakh names deleted compared to the December draft. About 1.2 crore voters received hearing notices citing “logical discrepancies”, according to a poll panel official.