SC asks petitioner to withdraw plea seeking direction to Election Committee for conducting SCBA polls through secret ballot

The Supreme Court on Thursday granted liberty to advocate, Pradeep Kumar Yadav, to withdraw his plea in connection with his petition seeking a direction to conduct the election strictly by way of the secret ballot in physical form adhering to the bye-law of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA).

A two-judge bench of the Apex Court, headed by Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman, and also comprising Justice B R Gavai, asked the petitioner-cum-lawyer, Pradeep Kumar Yadav to withdraw his petition.

Justice Nariman, during the course of the hearing, asked the petitioner, Pradeep Kumar Yadav, first tell me, how is Article 32 writ maintainable?

To this, he replied, the 1995 constitution bench judgment regarding the Bar Association said this.

"You are a voter here. No fundamental right violation," the bench led by Justice Nariman said and asked him withdrew his petition.

The petition filed by a lawyer, Pradeep Kumar Yadav, sought its direction to the Election Committee, 2021 of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) to conduct the election strictly by way of a secret ballot in physical form adhering to the bye-law of SCBA.

The SCBA is to conduct its elections on February 27, Saturday, after the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) New Delhi, opined for conducting the election through virtual mode, citing the "probability of spread of Covid-19 in a large congregation."

In his petition, Yadav asked, "What is the mechanism used by the agency to identify the real voter? Or will no proxy voting be done. How it will be done?"

Yadav also questioned how the SCBA would ensure that there will be no mismanagement in the election, which is a debatable issue.

He requested the top court to direct the respondents to conduct the election strictly as per the by-law of the SCBA.

Yadav in his petition also said that the members of the SCBA are not ready to adapt the virtual or hybrid method of elections as most of the lawyers have gone back to their respective native places.

"There is a remote possibility to access the internet and the virtual mode of elections is not practical. If they do not vote, their valuable right will vanish," Yadav said in his petition.

(ANI)

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