SC stays criminal proceedings against psephologist Sanjay Kumar for poll data error

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed criminal proceedings initiated against researcher Sanjay Kumar for an erroneous claim that he had made in a social media post and subsequently retracted about voter numbers in Maharashtra, the Hindustan Times reported.

A bench comprising Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice NV Anjaria granted interim relief to Kumar, a psephologist with the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, on his petition to quash the first information reports registered against him, Bar and Bench reported.

During the hearing, Kumar’s counsel told the court that he is a person with impeccable integrity.

“Thirty years of service to the nation and to the world,” Bar and Bench quoted his counsel as saying. “He [Kumar] is highly respected. It was a mistake. He apologised. He deleted and apologised publicly. After that, an FIR.”

The bench also noted that the psephologist had withdrawn the social media post. “By an ad-interim order, there shall be stay of further proceedings,” the Hindustan Times quoted the court as saying.

“Normally we would not entertain it,” the bench added. “But we will issue a notice.”

Two FIRs were filed by the police in Maharashtra’s Nagpur and Nashik on Wednesday against Kumar for the erroneous claim about voter numbers in the state.

The FIR in Nagpur was filed under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita about making false statements about an election, statements conducing to public mischief, furnishing false information...

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