Voter list row: India court seeks explanations from election body

New Delhi - India's Supreme Court has issued a call for explanations from the government, the national election body and the head of the Election Commission of India (ECI) over a massive voter roll revision that has sparked accusations of wrongdoing. Opposition parties and activists have protested and demanded Gyanesh Kumar's resignation following claims that the revision improperly removed millions of names from the voter lists.

Critics allege Kumar was acting on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.

The ECI, responsible for conducting elections in India, has denied any wrongdoing. On Monday, a three-judge bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant issued notices to the government, ECI and Kumar following petitions challenging the voter list revision decisions. Another hearing is scheduled for the following week.

One petition called for a probe into ECI records to ascertain if its actions adhered to constitutional requirements. Protests have erupted in several cities since a report by The Indian Express revealed that two of the ECI's three members had formally objected to key decisions involved in the voter roll revision at least 14 times.

"Newspaper reports may be 100 percent correct, partially correct or incorrect. We cannot pass an order on that basis today. We would definitely want their response. If we find there were instances where law wasn’t followed, we can undo it," the bench quoted broadcaster NDTV.