Supreme Court refuses to halt Bihar voter list revision, but raises concern on timing

The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to stay the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar but raised concerns over the timing of the exercise, which comes just months before the state assembly elections in the high-stakes state. A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi observed that while the revision itself may not be problematic, its timing in the run-up to the elections is questionable. "Your (ECI) exercise is not the problem, it is the timing... Why connect SIR in Bihar to assembly elections in November? Why can't it be irrespective of elections?" the bench remarked.

EC asked to accept key identity documents

The bench directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to consider Aadhaar, voter ID cards, and ration cards as valid documents during the verification drive. The court was hearing several petitions challenging the ECI's decision. It said, "We have no reason to doubt them (ECI). They are saying that, let's test their credentials. The matter needs hearing. Let it be listed on July 28. In the meantime, they will not publish the draft."

Concerns over recourse for voters

Justice Dhulia warned that once the electoral rolls are finalised, courts generally do not intervene. "The courts will not touch the electoral roll once they are finalised... which means a disenfranchised person will lack the option to challenge it (the revised list) before the election," he said.

Despite its reservations about the timing, the Supreme Court agreed that there is no issue in purging the electoral rolls through a rigorous process aimed at removing non-citizens. The Election Commission had announced the revision last month, citing the need to address large-scale additions and deletions made over the last two decades, which have increased the risk of duplicate entries. The move, however, has faced strong opposition from parties like the Congress and the RJD.