Dates out, little room for court intervention in SIR — for now, Pg6.

Key Highlights:

• The Election Commission (EC) announced the Bihar Assembly election schedule with voting in two phases on November 6 and November 9.
• The Supreme Court noted limited scope for intervention in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, concluding on November 11, with counting on November 14.
• Article 329 of the Constitution restricts court interference in electoral matters once the election process commences.
• The final electoral roll, published on September 30, contains 7.42 crore electors, with 69.5 lakh names deleted and 21.53 lakh added after the SIR.

Detailed Insights:

• Article 329 prevents courts from questioning laws on delimitation or seat allotment and mandates election challenges via petitions to the High Court after results are declared.
• The Representation of the People Act, 1951, Section 80, allows candidates or electors to file election petitions in the High Court within 45 days of result declaration.
• The Supreme Court has consistently interpreted "election" in Article 329(b) to encompass the entire electoral process from notification to result declaration.
• Despite the restrictions, the Supreme Court clarified that the publication of final electoral rolls does not prevent judicial scrutiny if any illegality is found.
• A 2023 judgment related to elections to the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council emphasized court intervention only when executive actions disrupt a level playing field.
• The SIR in Bihar required 7.89 crore registered voters to submit enumeration forms by July 25, with those added after 2009 needing to prove eligibility and citizenship.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Article 329: Constitutional provision restricting court interference in electoral matters once the election process has begun.
• Special Intensive Revision (SIR): A comprehensive review and update of electoral rolls, including verification of existing voters and addition of new eligible voters.
• Delimitation: The process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country or a province having a legislative body.