Bombay High Court: Immediate Voter Registration at 18 Could Overwhelm Electoral System

Mumbai:

The Bombay High Court expressed concerns on Thursday that if all individuals submitted voter registration applications immediately upon turning 18, electoral authorities would be overwhelmed with verification work, effectively "opening the floodgates" to administrative challenges.

The court clarified that while turning 18 provides the freedom to vote, the actual right to vote materializes only when electoral rolls undergo revision. The bench directed the Electoral Registration Officer to make a determination within six weeks regarding the application of an 18-year-old woman seeking voter enrollment in Mumbai.

Rupika Singh, who celebrated her 18th birthday in April, petitioned the court after her voter enrollment application was rejected because the state's cut-off date was October 1, 2024. The Maharashtra assembly elections took place in November 2024.

The schedule for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, which have been pending since March 2022, remains unannounced.

Justices Riyaz Chagla and Farhan Dubash, referencing a Supreme Court judgment, emphasized the distinction between voting freedom and voting rights. "Upon turning 18, you gain the freedom to vote. However, the right only becomes effective when authorities revise the electoral list," the court explained, noting that the petitioner was ineligible to vote as of October 2024 when the electoral roll was finalized.

The court further observed that if all newly-eligible citizens filed applications immediately upon turning 18, authorities would face an unmanageable verification workload. The bench maintained that individuals who turn 18 would be included during the next electoral roll revision.

When the court inquired whether the relevant authority would consider Singh's application, senior counsel Ashutosh Kumbakoni, representing the Election Commission of India and Maharashtra's Chief Electoral Officer, agreed to do so.

The bench subsequently directed the Electoral Registration Officer to evaluate Singh's application within six weeks and disposed of her petition.

In her plea, Singh argued that her fundamental right to vote was being violated, and without inclusion in the electoral roll, she would be unable to participate in the upcoming municipal elections.

Maharashtra's Chief Electoral Officer had announced earlier this week that the state would utilize the electoral roll prepared as of October 2024 for local body elections.

Kumbakoni clarified on Thursday that since the assembly election voters' list would be adopted for upcoming municipal polls, Singh would be ineligible to vote this year. He added that electoral lists are revised before each parliamentary or assembly election.

After reaching voting age in April, Singh attempted to register through the Election Commission of India's portal. However, she encountered obstacles as the system provided no option for Maharashtra residents who turned 18 on or after October 2, 2024, to select their birth date.

Singh's subsequent attempt to submit an offline application was also rejected, according to her petition.

She later discovered that July 1, 2025, had been designated as the enrollment cut-off date for local body elections, meaning only young citizens whose names appear on the voters' list by that date would be permitted to vote.

Singh contended that the rejection of her application constituted a "violation of her freedom of expression in the form of casting a vote."