SIR 2.0 | Nearly 99% enumeration forms already distributed in Kerala, Election Commission tells Supreme Court

Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, representing the EC, contended that there was no need to defer the SIR in Kerala due to the local body election process, as the poll body and the state election commission are collaborating to complete the exercise.

New Delhi: The Election Commission on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that nearly 99 per cent of voters have been supplied with the enumeration forms, and 50 per cent of the forms have been digitised in Kerala.

The poll panel opposed the pleas to defer the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Kerala, in the midst of local body elections in the state.

Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, representing the EC, contended before a bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, that there was no need to defer the SIR in Kerala due to the local body election process, as the poll body and the state election commission (SEC) are collaborating with each other to complete the exercise.

The SIR process has been scheduled from November 4 to December 4, and Kerala's local body elections from December 9 to 11.

The EC submitted that they are having meetings with the officials and collectors of various districts, and there is no problem as a small number of BLOs are required and the commissions are not finding any difficulty.

“It is almost over, 99 per cent (enumeration forms) of voters have been distributed. More than 50 per cent have been digitized, so there is no difficulty at all at the level of the SEC and the central election commission,” Dwivedi said.

The bench asked him to file a separate status report about Kerala. The court fixed the matter for consideration on December 2.

A senior counsel, representing Tamil Nadu, opposing SIR, said it is urgent as December 4 is the last day and so far, only 50 per cent of the forms have come.

Highlighting unrealistic timelines, the counsel said, “Now there is a cyclone alert in Tamil Nadu.”

Another counsel argued that 50 per cent of the forms have been digitised: enumeration forms given to the voters, received back and digitised in the past 22 days.

“We are left with only 8 days. Our concern is, what will happen to voters whose forms are not digitised (December 4, last date to digitise), they have to have supplementary draft rules for those left out,” the counsel said.

Dwivedi, however, once forms have been signed and delivered to the booth level officers (BLOs), then the submissions have been done.