SC refuses to accord urgent hearing to Christian body's plea for rescheduling polling date in TN

"How long does it take to vote and can't people cast their votes on a holy day?" the Supreme Court asked Thursday while refusing to accord urgent hearing to a plea which claimed that holding Lok Sabha polls on April 18 in Tamil Nadu will cause "inconvenience" to Christians and sought its rescheduling.

A bench headed by Justice S A Bobde made the observation when the lawyer representing a Christian body sought urgent hearing on their petition challenging the March 22 Madras High Court order which had dismissed their plea in this regard.

The petition, filed by a managing trustee of 'Christuva Nallenna Iyakkam', said that the scheduled date of polling for the Lok Sabha election in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry falls within the holy period, which begins with 'Maundy Thursday' and is followed by Good Friday and Holy Easter.

"You can't cast your vote on a holy day?" the bench, also comprising justices S A Nazeer and Indira Banerjee, asked the counsel who sought an urgent hearing on the plea.

"How long does it take to vote?" the bench said, adding, "We don't want to advise you on how to pray and how to cast vote".

The bench said there was no urgency in hearing the matter.

The petitioner has said in the plea that, "The General Elections to Lok Sabha 2019 has been notified on March 19 by the Election Commission of India and thereby the date of poll for Tamil Nadu and Puducherry was scheduled on April 18 falls on Maundy Thursday, within the 'Holy Triduum' which means the three days that begins with the liturgy on Maundy Thursday, followed by Good Friday and ends with prayer on Holy Easter Sunday."