New Delhi, Oct. 10 -- The Supreme Court today issued notice to the union Government and the Election Commission of India (ECI) on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking to extend voting rights to undertrial and pre-trial prisoners across the country.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran sought responses on the PIL filed by Sunita Sharma, represented by Advocate Prashant Bhushan.
The petition challenges Section 62(5) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which imposes a blanket ban on voting by individuals confined in prisons, irrespective of whether they are convicted or merely awaiting trial.
The provision states that "no person shall vote at any election if he is confined in a ...