The Supreme Court of India has ordered a complete recount of votes for all posts in the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) elections, responding to complaints of voting discrepancies.
During a special vacation bench hearing, Justices Surya Kant and Dipankar Datta were informed by the SCBA Election Committee (EC) that the number of votes cast exceeded the number of ballots issued — raising serious concerns about the legitimacy of the results.
To ensure transparency, the Election Committee proposed that the Registrar General of the Supreme Court oversee the recount process. The Court approved the suggestion and emphasized that no candidate should have doubts about the fairness of the procedure.
The Court directed that results from the recount should not be made public immediately. A detailed report of the recount must first be submitted to the Court for review, after which a decision on declaring results will be made.
SCBA Election
The SCBA elections held on May 20 saw Senior Advocate Vikas Singh elected as President. Rahul Kaushik was elected Vice President, and Pragya Baghel as Secretary. However, several candidates have alleged irregularities including bogus voting and procedural errors.
Controversy
One of the key issues brought to the Court’s attention was the EC’s failure to implement the Court-directed 33% reservation for women in Executive Committee posts. A lawyer argued that the EC announced results without ensuring the reserved positions for women.
Earlier, the Court had also ordered the preservation of CCTV footage from the election venue amid growing concerns over the election’s transparency.
Counting Hurdles and EC’s Clarification
The EC informed the bench that they faced technical issues during the counting process, especially for Executive Committee positions. Discrepancies occurred after every few ballots, further complicating the tallying process.
Court Urges Patience
Advising calm, the Court urged candidates and members not to disrupt proceedings and assured that all legitimate concerns would be addressed. Complaints should be submitted in writing and reviewed through proper channels.
Next Steps and Timeline
While the recount for the President’s post may be swift, recounting for Executive Committee posts is expected to take 2–3 more days. The Court had no objection to this and instructed that an official from the Registrar’s office be present throughout.
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