The Supreme Court on Wednesday held that the Election Commission of India, in the course of preparing or revising electoral rolls, is undoubtedly empowered to examine questions bearing upon citizenship. However, such an inquiry can only be undertaken from the limited standpoint of determining inclusion or exclusion from the electoral rolls.
The court clarified that such an exercise of exclusion or inclusion must be carried out with due regard to the presumption operating in favour of an elector whose name already exists on the rolls.
Free and fair elections do not rest merely upon mechanics of polling, the top court said, upholding the power of the Election Commission to conduct a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of electoral rolls.
The top court made it clear that an exclusion from a voter list does not mean that a person loses citizenship.
"If a citizen does not appear on electoral roll that does not mean the citizen was unable to prove his citizenship, but shows the inability of the Election Commission to verify citizenship," the court said.
Importantly, the court held that entirety of this SIR exercise remains open to judicial review, thereby ensuring that the inquiry is conducted in accordance with law and within the bounds of procedural fairness.
"We have no hesitation in adding that this assessment is necessarily prima facie and contextual. Where the material furnished by an individual does not inspire confidence or gives rise to doubt, the Commission would be within its authority to decline enrolment or to initiate action for deletion strictly in accordance with law," the court said.
The court said the deletion of person from voter list must be understood in its proper perspective.
"It does not amount to a declaration that the individual is not a citizen of India. It merely reflects the Commission's inability to be satisfied, for electoral purposes, that the statutory conditions stand fulfilled."
The court said that the consequence of such a citizenship determination is correspondingly limited.
"It affects the individual's entitlement to be included in the electoral rolls and thereby the right to participate in the electoral process," the court said.
The court clarified that deletion does not, however, operate to divest the individual of claims to citizenship, nor does it foreclose adjudication of that question by the competent authority under the Citizenship Act.
Moreover, in cases where the Commission is not satisfied that a person fulfils the statutory conditions for inclusion in the electoral rolls, it would be incumbent upon the Commission to refer such an individual to the competent authority of the Union Government for adjudication in accordance with law.
"The Commission's determination, being confined to electoral purposes, cannot assume finality on the question of citizenship. Any deletion effected on this ground shall therefore remain subject to the outcome of adjudication by the competent authority," the court said.
