SC seeks EC’s response on plea for disclosure of voter turn out, total count after poll results

The Supreme Court today sought the Election Commission’s response on a PIL by TMC Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra seeking direction to the EC to publish details of voter turnout and final vote count on its website once general and assembly poll results are declared.

A bench of Chief of India Justice S A Bobde and Justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant was informed by senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the TMC lawmaker, that the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 provides for mandatory disclosure of such details after the declaration of results in the polls.

The bench, however, asked the senior advocate as to how any such information pertaining to West Bengal assembly elections would be relevant for Tamil Nadu citizens and how it was covered under the freedom of speech and expression in the Constitution.

Sankaranarayanan referred to the Rules and said that such exercise has to be conducted pan-India and it was state-specific as such.

The plea said the statutory forms needed to be made public as the poll panel has a constitutional duty to ensure the credibility of the election process is upheld and democracy is allowed to thrive.