Congress moves Supreme Court challenging changes to election conduct rules
The Election Commission cannot be allowed to ‘unilaterally and brazenly’ amend polling guidelines without public consultation, said the Opposition party.
The Congress on Tuesday said it has moved the Supreme Court challenging a recent amendment to the 1961 Conduct of Elections Rules, which restricts public access to poll-related documents.
Party leader Jairam Ramesh said that the Election Commission, as a constitutional body that is responsible for the conduct of free and fair polls, cannot be allowed to “unilaterally and brazenly” amend important rules without public consultation.
“Especially not when that amendment eliminates public access to essential information that makes the electoral process more transparent and accountable,” Ramesh said on social media.
The Congress leader expressed hope that the Supreme Court would help restore the “rapidly declining” integrity of the electoral process.
As first reported by Scroll, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government on Friday amended Rule 93(2)(a) of the Conduct of Election Rules, which stated that “all other papers relating to the election shall be open to public inspection”.
The amended rule says: “All other papers as specified in these rules relating to the election shall be open to public inspection.”
With this change – notified by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice, in consultation with the Election Commission – not all poll-related papers can be inspected by the public. Only those papers specified in the Conduct of Election Rules can be inspected by the public.
The courts would also not be able to direct the poll panel to provide all election-related papers for public scrutiny.
This came days after the Punjab and Haryana High Court on December 9 directed the Election Commission to provide videography, security camera footage and copies of documents related to votes polled at a polling station during the recent Haryana Assembly elections to advocate Mehmood Pracha.
Several Opposition leaders, including Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal, have criticised the amendment, alleging that it was intended “to kill the transparency” in the electoral process.
