New Delhi, July 28, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to ensure that election-related responsibilities assigned to schoolteachers, including duties for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, do not become an “unbearable” burden for them.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia issued the direction while hearing a public interest litigation challenging the deployment of government schoolteachers for SIR-related work in the national capital.
The court acknowledged the constitutional authority of the ECI to assign election duties but said the provisions of Section 27 of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, must also be kept in mind.
The Bench observed that teachers already spend six to eight hours in classrooms and additional election responsibilities after school hours or on non-teaching days could cause significant stress.
“After working in a school for 6-8 hours, if a teacher is engaged to perform election duties, it may cause stress,” the court said, adding that the ECI and its officers should remain mindful of the workload faced by teachers.
The court directed election authorities to take appropriate measures to ensure that election-related assignments do not create excessive pressure on teachers.
During the hearing, the Bench orally remarked that many teachers, especially those working in primary and junior schools, are women with family responsibilities and should not be subjected to unreasonable workloads. It also questioned directions issued in certain communications that required teachers to work for extended hours.
The court asked why directions were issued to prevent school principals from treating absence as unauthorised leave if teachers were being assigned election work only after school hours.
The ECI informed the court that teachers were carrying out Booth Level Officer (BLO) duties after school hours and that volunteers had also been deployed to ensure academic activities were not affected. The poll body stated in its affidavit that no teacher was being engaged for SIR work during school hours and that it was complying with Supreme Court guidelines on assigning election duties to teachers.
The petitioner, however, alleged that teachers were facing conflicting instructions from school authorities and election officials regarding their responsibilities.
The court said that any challenge to the ECI’s claims would have to be supported with evidence placed on record. It granted the petitioner liberty to file a rejoinder to the ECI affidavit and scheduled the next hearing for August 20.
The PIL seeks rationalisation of teacher deployment for SIR duties and argues that non-teaching staff should be considered for election-related responsibilities to prevent disruption of classroom education in government schools.
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