Table of Contents
The Hindu Editorial Analysis
We understand the significance of reading The Hindu newspaper for enhancing reading skills, improving comprehension of passages, staying informed about current events, enhancing essay writing, and more, especially for banking aspirants who need to focus on editorials for vocabulary building. This article will explore today’s editorial points, along with practice questions and key vocabulary.
SIR order was legislative in nature, aimed at ‘purifying’ electoral rolls, and adopted a liberal approach, EC informs Supreme Court
- The Election Commission (EC) told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that the order announcing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was legislative in nature.
- The EC said that the large exercise carried out to clean and correct electoral rolls was done by following a liberal and flexible approach.
- These submissions were made before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, even though reports suggested that nearly 6.5 crore voters’ names were removed from the draft electoral rolls in nine States and three Union Territories during the second phase of the SIR.
- The Election Commission was represented by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, who argued that the EC’s power to conduct and manage elections comes from the broad authority given under Article 324 of the Constitution.
- Dwivedi said that the powers of the Election Commission are not limited to administrative work alone.
- He explained that the EC also performs adjudicatory (decision-making) and legislative (rule-making) functions.
- To explain the adjudicatory role of the EC, Mr. Dwivedi referred to the Election Symbols Order.
- He said that when a political party splits, the Election Commission decides which group is the real party, and this shows its decision-making power.
- Dwivedi said that the SIR order was legislative in character because it provided a complete system.
- This system included the rules to be followed, the documents required, and the method by which the revision was to be carried out.
- Responding to the petitioners’ claim that the SIR had no legal backing and that the Election Commission had created the procedure from “thin air,” Mr. Dwivedi said that Article 324 gives the EC flexibility.
- He explained that this flexibility allows the Election Commission to adjust or deviate from procedures when preparing electoral rolls, because different situations arise over time.
- Dwivedi further said that Parliament and the Election Commission work together and depend on each other.
- He described their relationship as symbiotic, meaning both exist to support democracy, ensure proper elections, and make sure elected representatives reach Parliament.
- He stressed that the powers of the Election Commission have been protected over the years and have never been taken away or reduced.
- Explaining the approach taken during the 2025 SIR, Mr. Dwivedi said that the basic assumption was always in favour of citizenship.
- He clarified that if this presumption had not been applied, then every voter listed since 2003 would have been asked to show proof of citizenship.
- Dwivedi said that the names removed from the final electoral list in Bihar were mainly due to reasons like death of voters, duplicate entries, and migration.
- He informed the court that pre-filled enumeration forms were given to all persons whose names appeared in the electoral rolls up to June 2025.
- According to him, voters whose names were already included in the electoral rolls prepared after the 2002 SIR were given full credibility.
- He said that anyone who could show a connection with the 2002 electoral roll was not required to submit any documents.
- Those who could not prove such a connection were only asked to submit any one document from a list of more than 11 acceptable documents, which included Aadhaar.
- A house-to-house survey was carried out using these pre-filled forms.
- Voters only needed to check the details and sign the form.
- Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were responsible for uploading the signed forms.
- Booth Level Agents of political parties were allowed to submit up to 50 forms per day.
- Dwivedi highlighted all these steps to show that the Election Commission followed a fair, flexible, and citizen-friendly approach during the 2025 SIR exercise.
Nitin Nabin Officially Takes Charge as BJP’s National Chief
- Nitin Nabin, aged 45, officially took charge as the new national president of the BJP on Tuesday.
- The ceremony was held in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
- At the event, Mr. Modi said that in matters related to the party, Nitin Nabin would be his boss.
- He explained that the party organisation is led by the party president, while the government is led by the Prime Minister.
- Modi recalled making a similar statement in 2019 alongside the then BJP president Amit Shah.
- He said that, as a party worker, he had presented his work report to the new president and jokingly added that Mr. Nabin would now write his confidential report (CR).
- Modi said he was waiting for guidance from the new party president and repeated that in party matters, Nitin Nabin ji was the boss, while he himself was only a worker.
- Referring to Mr. Nabin’s age, Mr. Modi said that he belonged to a generation that grew up listening to news on the radio and is now comfortable using artificial intelligence.
- Nabin was declared BJP’s national president at the party headquarters on Monday after 37 nominations filed on his behalf were found to be valid.
- Since no other candidate filed a nomination, the election concluded a nearly year-long internal organisational process.
- Speaking on political issues, Modi said that infiltrators pose a serious threat to national security and that identifying and sending them back is necessary.
- He criticised the Congress party and asked BJP workers to learn from its mistakes.
- Modi said that in 1984, Congress won more than 400 Lok Sabha seats with over 50% vote share.
- He compared this to the present situation, saying that today Congress is struggling to cross even 100 seats.
- Modi said that unlike Congress, the BJP reviews its performance honestly, even after winning elections.
- He added that the BJP tries to improve in areas where it loses, giving the example of the party’s recent civic election victory in Maharashtra.
- Modi said that although BJP presidents change, the party’s ideology remains the same, and leadership changes do not change the party’s direction.
- Several former BJP presidents attended the event, including Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Amit Shah, and J.P. Nadda.
- After taking charge, Mr. Nabin spoke about his long journey in the BJP and thanked the party leadership and workers for trusting him with the role.
- He said that the upcoming Assembly elections would be one of his biggest challenges.
- He mentioned that elections would soon take place in Tamil Nadu, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, and Puducherry.
- Nabin said that changing population patterns in these States were being widely discussed and were affecting politics.
- He accused Opposition parties of trying to interfere with cultural and religious traditions.
- As an example, he referred to the Karthigai Deepam festival controversy in Tamil Nadu.
- He also mentioned the attempt to impeach a Madras High Court judge related to the issue.
- Nabin alleged that Opposition parties tried to stop the sacred Karthigai Deepam festival held on a hill in Tamil Nadu.
- He said this was not an isolated case and claimed that there was a planned effort to stop similar traditions.
- He repeated that there was a recent attempt to impeach a judge and linked it to opposition to cultural practices.
- He said that when matters like Somnath or festivals celebrating heritage are discussed, the Opposition feels uncomfortable.
- Nabin said that it is important to stand against forces that try to block such traditions.
- He added that those who deny the existence of Ram Setu and oppose festivals like Karthigai Deepam do not deserve a place in Indian politics.
SC is serious about holding dog feeders liable
- The Supreme Court said on Tuesday that it was serious about holding people who feed dogs responsible in cases of dog bite incidents.
- This came even as animal welfare groups warned that the court’s oral comments were having bad effects on the ground, including reports of attacks on dog feeders.
- The Bench included Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta, and Justice N.V. Anjaria.
- Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for an intervener, told the court that he believed the earlier remark about fixing responsibility on dog feeders was made sarcastically and could be misunderstood.
- Justice Nath clarified that the remark was not a joke and was said seriously during the hearing.
- After this, Mr. Bhushan said that although informal discussions happen in court, some oral remarks can have real-world consequences.
- He said that people were using these remarks to justify attacking dog feeders, and some feeders were being beaten.
- Justice Mehta said that the oral remarks were part of a discussion during arguments and that this did not change the situation.
- Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran said that both judges and lawyers should be careful because court proceedings are widely broadcast.
- He pointed out that hearings are televised and said that restraint is necessary.
- Justice Nath agreed and said the court was holding back from making further comments that could cause misunderstanding.
- Earlier, the court had suggested imposing heavy compensation on States for each dog bite incident and fixing responsibility on feeders in cases causing serious or lifelong harm.
- The judges had also said orally that people who feed stray dogs should keep them inside their homes or premises.
- The court finished hearing the petitioners’ arguments and listed the matter for further hearing on January 28.
Important Questions
- Why did the Election Commission argue that the SIR order was “legislative in character” under Article 324 of the Constitution?
- How did the Election Commission explain the “liberal approach” adopted during the 2025 SIR exercise while preparing electoral rolls?
- Why did Prime Minister Narendra Modi say that in party matters Nitin Nabin would be his “boss”?
- What concerns did Nitin Nabin raise about upcoming Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, and Puducherry and the issue of changing demographics?
- Why did the Supreme Court Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta, and Justice N.V. Anjaria say it was serious about holding dog feeders accountable for dog bite incidents?
- What concern did advocate Prashant Bhushan and animal welfare groups express about the oral observations made during the hearing being widely publicised?
Important Vocabulary
- Legislative – Related to making rules or laws.
- Adjudicatory – Related to deciding disputes or giving judgments.
- Symbiotic – Mutually supportive relationship between two institutions.
- Presumption – An accepted belief without immediate proof.
- Demographics – Statistical data about population characteristics.
- Infiltrators – People who enter a country illegally or secretly.
- Impeach – To formally accuse a public official of misconduct.
- Objective – Based on facts, not personal opinions.
- Accountable – Responsible for actions or consequences.
- Intervener – A person who joins a case to present views.
- Circumspect – Careful to avoid problems or misunderstanding.
- Compensation – Money paid for loss or injury.
Download Online Mock Test Mobile APP
3
