Supreme Court warns of cancelling Bihar voter roll revision if illegality found

PTC Web Desk:  The Supreme Court on Monday cautioned that it could cancel the entire Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar if any irregularities are detected in the methodology followed by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, hearing petitions challenging the voter roll revision, noted that as a constitutional body, the ECI is expected to adhere to established legal procedures. The court, however, refrained from giving an interim opinion and underlined that its final decision will carry nationwide implications for the SIR process. The matter is scheduled for a detailed hearing on October 7.

On September 8, the top court ruled that Aadhaar should be accepted as the 12th valid document for voter enrollment during the ongoing Bihar SIR exercise. The directive came after reports that officials were rejecting Aadhaar despite prior instructions. The Bench clarified that while Aadhaar does not establish citizenship, it remains a legitimate proof of identity and residence.

Opposition parties have strongly criticised the SIR drive, alleging that lakhs of genuine voters are being removed from the rolls without due verification. They argue that excluding Aadhaar from the ECI’s approved list of 11 documents has unfairly disenfranchised many voters, since it is one of the most widely used IDs in the country. According to an August 18 draft list, nearly 65 lakh names were deleted as part of the revision.

Responding to the criticism, the Election Commission rejected the “vote chori” (vote theft) allegations, accusing opposition parties of misleading voters. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has also asked Congress leader and Lok Sabha Opposition head Rahul Gandhi to either submit proof of his claims in an affidavit or issue a public apology.