SIR 2026 Election Commission: Meet 5 Retired SC, HC Judges on Panel to Examine Legality, Impact on Voters | Today’s news
The Lawyers’ Association for the Constitution (LAFC) has set up a panel of former Supreme Court and High Court judges to look into the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of the Electoral Roll conducted by the Election Commission (EC).
The panel will consist of five members and will be chaired by former Supreme Court judge Madan B Lokur, the lawyers’ association said in a press release dated October 2, 2026.
Apart from Lokur, the panel will comprise former Supreme Court Justice AK Patnaik, former Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir Badar Durrez Ahmad and former Justices Rekha Sharma and Anjana Prakash.
Who are these five judges? Learn all about their education and career here.
1. Justice Madan B. Lokur (Former Judge of Supreme Court of India)
Education: Justice Madan Bhimarao Lokur was born on 31 December 1953 and studied at the Modern School in New Delhi till 1968. In 1970-71 he passed the ISCE exam at St. Joseph’s Collegiate, Allahabad. He studied History (Hons) at St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi in 1974. He received his LLB from the Faculty of Law, Delhi University in 1977.
Career: Justice Madan B. Lokur enrolled as an advocate in July 1977. He has practiced in the Supreme Court of India and the Delhi High Court.
He was appointed as the Additional Attorney General of India in July 1998 and later served as an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court in February 1999. He was appointed as a Permanent Judge of that High Court in July 1999. Justice Madan B. Lokur also served as the Acting Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court from 13 February 2010 to 21 May 2010.
He was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court on June 4, 2012. On December 30, 2018, he retired from the position of chief justice of the Supreme Court.
As a judge of the non-resident bench of the Supreme Court of Fiji, he became by far the first Indian judge to become a judge in a foreign country.
2. Justice AK Patnaik (Former Judge of Supreme Court of India)
Education: Justice Ananga Kumar (AK) Patnaik was born on June 3, 1949. He is the son of late Gopal Chandra Patnaik, a leading businessman of great repute in Odisha. He graduated from Delhi University with Honors in Political Science and received his Law Degree from Madhusudan Law College, Cuttack.
Career: He was admitted to the State Bar Council of Orissa on 28 March 1974 and practiced in the High Court, Subordinate Courts and Tribunals of Orissa.
On 13 January 1994, he was elevated as an Additional Judge of the High Court of Odisha. On 7 February 1994, he assumed charge as an Additional Judge of the Gauhati High Court. In 1995, he became a permanent judge of the Gauhati High Court.
After rendering valuable service for eight years as a Judge of the Gauhati High Court, he resumed office as a Judge of the Orissa High Court on 15 April 2002.
Justice AK Patnaik was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court on 14 March 2005. On 2 October 2005, he was transferred as the Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. He was appointed a Supreme Court judge in 2009 and retired in 2014.
3. Justice Badar Durrez Ahmad (Former Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court)
Education: Justice Ahmad was born on 16 March 1956 in Shillong (Meghalaya) and studied at St Edmund’s College, Shillong, (1962-1966) and St Columba’s High School, New Delhi (1966-1971).
Graduated from St Stephen’s College, Delhi University in 1975. He was a Lecturer in Economics for BA (Hons) second and final year students at St Stephen’s College, Delhi (1977-1979).
At the same time, he also studied for his LLB Degree, which he obtained in 1980 from Delhi University.
Career: Justice Badar Durrez Ahmad enrolled as an advocate at the Delhi Bar Council on 5 September 1980 and commenced practice in the Supreme Court of India and the Delhi High Court.
According to the Delhi High Court website, Justice Badar Durrez Ahmad has a keen interest in personal law, including Muslim personal law, and has written several articles on the subject.
On 20 December 2002, he was elevated as an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court. On 10 June 2013, he was appointed as the Acting Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court and served until 2 September 2013.
On 17 February 2014, he was reappointed as Acting Chief Justice. On 1 April 2017, he was elevated as the Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.
4. Justice Rekha Sharma (Former Delhi High Court Judge)
Education: Justice Rekha Sharma was born on 31 July 1949 and completed her studies at Miranda House, University of Delhi, Delhi. She graduated in law from the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi and was admitted as an advocate in the Bar Council of Delhi in 1972.
Career: She practiced primarily in the Delhi High Court on constitutional, civil and criminal matters. From 1977 to 1988, she was appointed by the Central Government Council to the Delhi High Court.
She served as Additional District Judge in January 1988 and was appointed District and Sessions Judge on 1 October 2004.
On 23 February 2005, she was promoted as an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court and became a Permanent Judge on 22 February 2006. She retired on 30 July 2011.
5. Justice Anjana Prakash (Former Judge, Patna High Court)
Education: Justice Anjana Prakash was a graduate of Patna Women’s College and studied law at Bhagalpur University, according to a report in the leaflet.
Career: Justice Anjana Prakash was appointed as a judge of the Patna High Court on 13 June 2009 and served until her retirement on 17 July 2016.
She was the first woman to be elevated as a senior advocate in the Patna High Court, along with Justice Seema Ali Khan, Leaflet reported.
She has established herself as one of the senior most criminal lawyers in the Patna High Court and is the first woman to be elevated as a senior advocate in this court.
After her retirement in 2016, she continued to practice law as a senior advocate at the Supreme Court of India, the report added.
What will the commission do?
The LAFC said the commission was formed in response to growing concerns among citizens about the “design, implementation and implications” of the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of the Electoral Roll by the Election Commission of India.
She said the panel will examine the constitutional and legal validity, methodology and overall impact of the electoral roll revision exercise.
“The newly formed independent committee of ex-judges for special intensive review of the electoral roll will fully autonomously examine the constitutional and legal validity, methodology and overall impact of the SIR exercise on eligible voters,” declaration read.
Among other things, the commission will examine whether eligible citizens were kept on the electoral roll and whether ineligible contributions were properly excluded, the report said.
As part of its investigation, the commission plans to hold public hearings across the country, with full and regional benches traveling to various locations to record views and testimony from affected citizens, civil society organizations and experts.
In addition, a dedicated research unit will collect and analyze data on additions/deletions of electoral rolls across the country and submit it to the Commission.
“The legal support team will review relevant legislation, notifications and verification processes to assess compliance with constitutional guarantees,” the association said in a press release.
LAFC said the commission will have final responsibility for its findings and recommendations.
The commission aims to complete its investigation on an intensive schedule with the goal of releasing a final report to the public by December 2026.
It said a number of senior lawyers including Kapil Sibal, Prashant Bhushan, Chander Uday Singh, Prashanto Chandra Sen, Raju Ramachandran, Rebecca Mammen John, Warisha Farasat and Vrinda Grover will provide strategic legal advice to the commission.
