Srinagar, October 6, 2026: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday criticised the judiciary over what she described as a gap between observations made during court proceedings and the judgments delivered in cases.
Her remarks came in response to an observation by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant concerning the Election Commission’s modified Form 6 in connection with the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Mehbooba Raises Questions Over Judicial Observations
In a post on X, Mehbooba Mufti alleged that over the past decade, the judiciary had repeatedly allowed what she termed acts amounting to contempt of court to become normalised.
She further argued that courts sometimes make strong or significant observations during hearings, while the eventual judgments may not reflect those observations.
The comments were made in the context of the Supreme Court’s position regarding the Election Commission’s modified Form 6 for the ongoing electoral-roll revision process.
Reference to Supreme Court Observation
Mehbooba’s remarks followed Chief Justice Surya Kant’s observation that the Supreme Court had not approved the Election Commission’s modified Form 6 for the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
The issue relates to the electoral-roll revision exercise and the forms being used in the process. Her response focused primarily on the broader functioning of the judiciary and the relationship between observations made during hearings and final judicial outcomes.
PDP Chief’s Criticism
The PDP president said that judicial observations made during proceedings can attract considerable public attention, but argued that the final outcome of a case may sometimes take a different direction.
Her comments represent her political assessment of judicial proceedings and were not accompanied in the reports by a specific list of cases supporting the broader allegation.
The statement comes amid continuing public and political attention around the Supreme Court’s proceedings involving electoral processes and the Election Commission.
Political Context
Mehbooba Mufti, who previously served as Chief Minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, remains a prominent opposition voice in the Union Territory.
Her latest remarks add to a series of recent political statements on constitutional, electoral and institutional issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir and the wider country.
The Supreme Court’s proceedings on electoral matters continue to draw attention from political parties and public representatives, particularly where changes to electoral procedures and documentation are concerned.
As the matter develops, further proceedings and judicial orders are expected to clarify the legal position surrounding the electoral-roll revision process.