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Holding that a voter cannot be deprived of his right to exercise franchise, the Allahabad high court on Monday ruled that a person having his name in the voters list can cast his vote even without having a photo identity card.
A division bench, comprising Chief Justice S K Sen and Justice S R Alam, ruled that a person whose name figures in the voters list can cast his vote, unless his identity is challenged and found false.
Observing that ration cards and other documents were not an alternative for the photo identity cards, the court said however, they could be used to verify the identity of the voter, if challenged.
If the identity of a voter is challenged, then the presiding officers should act as per the rules, the court said. The order was passed on Public Interest Litigation, filed by one Umesh Chand Jaiswal and others, challenging the Election Commission's order making the photo identity card mandatory for casting votes.
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