SC upholds ECI’s 2002 base year for Sikkim voter roll revision

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with the Election Commission of India's decision to keep 2002 as the base year for the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Sikkim. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana dismissed a PIL by the NGO Sikkimese Mulniwasi Surakacha Sangh, which sought 1993 as the base year.

The court said the goalpost cannot be shifted mid-exercise, noting that 2002 is the uniform base year across all states because the last SIR was conducted then. The NGO argued that electorate data from 2002 does not match Sikkim's demographic data and would cause anomalies. The bench countered that voters enrolled in 2002 have already voted in subsequent elections.

CJI Kant said no aggrieved individual had approached the court, and allowing the NGO to seek judicial interference in the ECI's decision would be a dangerous proposition. Justice Bagchi noted that every border state faces migration and demographic change. The court dismissed the petition and suggested the petitioner could seek a reasonable exemption from the ECI.