New Delhi
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition by the YSR Congress Party challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) circular on postal ballot norms. Justices Aravind Kumar and Sandeep Mehta ruled there was no merit in the case and declined to interfere with the Andhra Pradesh High Court’s decision to dismiss the YSRCP’s writ petition due to the availability of an alternate remedy.
The ECI’s May 30 circular directed election officials to accept postal ballots as valid even if the declaration form lacked a name, designation, or seal, provided it had the attesting officer’s signature. The YSRCP’s special leave petition, filed by advocate Mahfooz A. Nazki, argued that the declaration of results for the Andhra Pradesh Assembly and Parliament constituencies on Tuesday could be prejudiced by invalid votes being counted.
The petition stated, The judgment of the Hon’ble High Court is unsustainable since Article 329(b) of the Constitution of India applies only if the petitioner seeks to impede the election process or challenge the election itself. The petitioner is merely challenging a circular issued by the ECI to ensure a free and fair election without any bias.
In the recent elections for the 175-member Assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats, over five lakh postal ballots were cast, setting a new record in the state’s history.
