Supreme Court Orders Election Commission to Probe Bulk Form 7 Filings in UP

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Election Commission (EC) to investigate claims of irregularities concerning the mass submission of Form 7 applications, which are used for the deletion of names from electoral rolls, during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Uttar Pradesh.

Court Directive and Legal Proceedings

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, presided over the hearing. The court instructed the petitioners—who include Congress MP Tanuj Punia—to provide a formal note outlining specific unresolved irregularities to the Election Commission's legal representatives.

Following the submission of this note, the EC is required to:

• Conduct a factual examination of the alleged irregularities.
• Implement necessary corrective measures.
• Submit a compliance report to the court.

Allegations and Responses

The petitioners raised concerns regarding the electoral roll revision process ahead of the state assembly elections, noting that over 13 crore electors were included in the final roll. The opposition has claimed that approximately 2.04 crore names were removed during the process. Specific allegations were presented, such as the filing of 32 Form 7 applications in a single constituency targeting specific residents.

Representing the Election Commission, Senior Advocate DS Naidu acknowledged that the authority had observed bulk Form 7 submissions. However, he clarified to the bench that these applications were identified as false during cross-checking by EC officials and that no action had been taken on these specific filings.

How to Verify

To track the progress of this investigation or view official updates regarding the Uttar Pradesh electoral rolls, citizens should monitor the official website of the Election Commission of India (eci.gov.in) or the Chief Electoral Officer, Uttar Pradesh portal.