Thousands take to Delhi streets as Rahul Gandhi, Opposition march to Supreme Court against CEC

Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, and other leaders of the INDIA bloc filed a joint writ petition before the Supreme Court challenging the legitimacy of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. According to The Indian Express - India, the petition alleges the Chief Election Commissioner exercised collective powers of the Election Commission of India without the knowledge or concurrence of other commissioners, and cites the absence of a recorded decision authorizing the nationwide SIR.

Other allegations include the unlawful modification of statutory Form 6, opaque functioning of electoral-roll databases, and the large-scale exclusion of electors without adequate notice.

Thousands of protesters, including activists and opposition supporters, gathered at the Barakhamba Road and Connaught Place intersection and marched toward the Supreme Court in New Delhi, according to Hindustan Times and Qatar Tribune. The Free Press Journal reports the march was held amid allegations of electoral irregularities involving Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

However, the Supreme Court registry flagged 14 defects in the petition, including a court fee shortfall, missing authorizations from nine petitioners, and formatting issues such as small fonts and unclear photocopies of Mallikarjun Kharge's identity card.

The BJP criticized the protests, with Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attributing the Congress party's actions to frustration over poll defeats. BJP MP Anurag Thakur questioned the decision to submit a memorandum to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, suggesting it amounted to threatening the judiciary over a sub-judice matter, according to the Times of India.

Brief written by urgent.news from Hindustan Times, The Indian Express - India, Times of India, Qatar Tribune, Free Press Journal — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.