India's Supreme Court Challenges Government Over Voter Roll Purge

Chief Justice Surya Kant issued a sharp rebuke to the Election Commission of India (ECI), stating definitively that the court never approved the modified Form 6 used for voter registration. This directly contradicts claims made by the ECI last month. The court has now ordered the commission and its head, Gyanesh Kumar, to explain the disappearance of over 130 million names from the rolls in recent months.

The mass removal of voters has fueled nationwide protests led by the Cockroach Janta Party and various student groups. Demonstrators, who staged symbolic acts of playing dead to highlight the wrongful deletion of active citizens, argue the revision process specifically targets Muslim voters opposed to the Bharatiya Janata Party. While the government maintains the effort is intended to remove ineligible entries and illegal infiltrators, the Supreme Court is now investigating allegations that Kumar unilaterally bypassed other commissioners to force the changes through.

Police responses to these demonstrations have drawn intense scrutiny, particularly in New Delhi, where hundreds have been detained. Amnesty International has condemned the crackdown as a blatant attack on assembly rights, following reports that officers allegedly sexually assaulted three journalists covering the unrest. With further hearings scheduled for later this week, legal experts like Menaka Guruswamy warn that the integrity of India's democratic process is at a critical breaking point.