SC notice to Election Commission on PIL filed for online publication of polling data

The Supreme Court on Monday sought the Election Commission's response on a PIL filed by TMC Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra seeking direction to the poll body to publish details of voter turnout and final vote count on its website once general and assembly poll results are declared.

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Fundamental right under Article 19 (1) (a)

Appearing for Moitra, Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan informed a bench of Chief Justice SA Bobde and Justice BR Gavai and Justice Surya Kant that the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 provides for mandatory disclosure of such details after the declaration of results in the polls. The petitioner argued that the citizens have a fundamental right to know under Article 19 (1) (a) (freedom of speech and expression) of the Constitution the details of voter turn out and vote counts in the elections.

The plea has sought a direction to the poll panel that there should be "public disclosure and due reporting of accounts of voters recorded (Form 17C Part-I), result of counting (Form 17C Part-II) and final result sheet (Form 20) under the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 after each parliamentary and assembly elections within a period of 48 hours."

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The bench, however, asked Sankaranarayanan as to how any such information pertaining to West Bengal assembly elections would be relevant for Tamil Nadu citizens and how it was covered under the freedom of speech and expression in the Constitution. On this, the Senior Advocate referred to the Rules and said that such exercise has to be conducted pan-India and it was state-specific as such.

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Practice of publishing such forms discontinued

Mahua Moitra's plea said the practice of publishing such forms on ECI's website has been there, but it has been now discontinued. The petition invoked Article 19(1) (a) to state that the right to know and receive information about the integrity of the electoral process mandated a direction from court to the poll body to formulate a protocol for publishing this information. The plea said the statutory forms needed to be made public as the poll body has a constitutional duty to ensure the credibility of the election process is upheld and democracy is allowed to thrive. Accountability and transparency of the election process have been referred to for seeking a direction to the ECI to come up with a protocol for publishing these forms on its website.

(With ANI inputs)

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