Will decide Congress leader Surjewala's plea for electoral rolls in 3 months: ECI to Delhi HC

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court was on Tuesday informed by the Election Commission of India that it would decide within three months a representation of Congress MP Randeep Singh Surjewala seeking the electoral rolls for elections held in Haryana and Maharashtra between 2009 and 2024.

Justice Jyoti Singh recorded the submission of the Election Commission of India (ECI) counsel who said since the details related to 2009, it would not be possible to logistically take an immediate decision and sought three months.

"Accordingly, this writ petition is disposed of without entering into the merits of the case by taking the stand of the ECI on record that the representation dated December 29, 2024 will be decided as expeditiously as possible and not later than three months from today," the court said.

Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Surjewala, submitted the ECI hadn't decide the December 29 2024 representation seeking supply of electoral rolls for the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections conducted in Haryana and Maharashtra between 2009 and 2024.

On February 24, 2025, said Singhvi, a letter was issued by the ECI addressed to the chief electoral officers of the respective states to decide the representation in accordance with law by passing a speaking order after affording an opportunity to the MP, if required.

But no time period to decide the representation was prescribed, the senior lawyer added.

On the court's query for a specific time limit, the ECI counsel said a decision would be taken as expeditiously as possible.

Singhvi then said, "The only reason I mentioned this was because it has taken them two months to reply to say that now we will reply. In two months time they have said that we will now take further time to reply. If that is their understanding of time limits as expeditiously as possible, then it might be like Alice in Wonderland's time limits."

Surjewala's plea said the ECI was expected to ensure utmost transparency in its functioning while being amenable to verification and accountability over the electoral process at any stage prior, during, or post the conclusion of elections.

"Thus, it is imperative that the Election Commission allows political parties to scrutinise the data collected by the commission over the years to ensure that there are no undiscovered discrepancies with the electoral process," it said.