The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for July 10 on the petitions challenging the Election Commission's decision for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
New Delhi: Amidst preparations for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections, the Supreme Court has taken cognizance of the controversy surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. On Monday, the vacation bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, while hearing the petitions, stated that they would hear the matter again on July 10.
These petitions challenge the Election Commission's order of June 24, which directed a comprehensive scrutiny and updating process of the electoral rolls. RJD MP Manoj Jha, TMC MP Mahua Moitra, and several social organizations have approached the court, terming the process as unconstitutional and discriminatory.
Risk of Name Removal Before November Elections
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioners in the Supreme Court, said that in a large state like Bihar, with approximately 8 crore voters, it is practically impossible to conduct document verification and revision so quickly. He urged the court to issue a notice to the Election Commission to prevent the violation of voters' rights.
The petition states that under this process, over four crore voters will have to submit their documents, and if they fail to submit the documents by July 25, they will be removed from the list.
Unconstitutional and Discriminatory
Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha argued in his petition that the Election Commission's order directly violates Articles 14 (Right to Equality), Article 21 (Protection of Life and Personal Liberty), Article 325 (Protection of Right to Vote), and Article 326 (Adult Suffrage) of the Constitution. He said it is not a coincidence but a planned attempt to exclude Dalits, Muslims, the poor, and migrant laborers from the voter list. The commission neither consulted any political party nor stakeholders.
Jha demanded that the Bihar assembly elections scheduled for November 2025 be conducted on the basis of the old voter list so that injustice is not done to any section of society.
Questions Raised Over the Process Amidst Monsoon and Floods
The petitioners also stated that Bihar is prone to floods during the monsoon, and a large number of people are displaced. In such a situation, it will be very difficult for people to submit documents or participate in the nomination process. Manoj Jha said, "It will be almost impossible for migrant laborers to return to Bihar with documents within 30 days."
The Election Commission's order stated that the last special revision in Bihar took place in 2003. In 20 years, due to urbanization, migration, and negligence in recording deaths, there have been irregularities in the voter lists. According to the commission, the names of many illegal immigrant citizens are also included in the voter list, which needs to be removed to conduct fair and clean elections.
Therefore, the commission ordered the SIR of the voter list on June 24, which includes the verification of eligible voters and the removal of ineligible names.
Initial Remarks by the Supreme Court
During the hearing, Justice Dhulia said that "the timeframe currently set has no validity until the election notification is issued." The court asked the petitioners to provide copies of their petitions to the Election Commission's lawyers so that their side could also be heard in the next hearing.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra also filed a separate petition in the Supreme Court demanding that the Election Commission be stopped from issuing such SIR orders in any state, including Bihar. She argued that this could become a means of arbitrary manipulation of the voter list, which would affect minorities and marginalized sections. Similarly, the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) and several other civil society organizations have also challenged this order.
The Supreme Court, after hearing the arguments of all parties, has scheduled another hearing for July 10. In the meantime, all the petitioners will send details of their objections to the Election Commission by giving them notice.
