The Supreme Court on Monday warned the Election Commission of India (ECI) that any illegality in its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar could result in the exercise being struck down entirely.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi stressed that while it was presuming the poll body, as a constitutional authority, was acting within the law, the court would not hesitate to intervene if violations were found.
The court scheduled October 7 for final arguments on the validity of the Bihar SIR exercise, clarifying that its ruling would apply to SIR exercises across India. It refused to give any interim or “piecemeal” opinion before the hearing.
The bench also allowed petitioners challenging the Bihar process to argue against the pan-India SIR. Meanwhile, it issued notice on a plea seeking recall of the September 8 order which directed the ECI to include Aadhaar card as the 12th prescribed identity document for the exercise.
The court reiterated that Aadhaar cannot be treated as proof of citizenship, but may be used as a valid document to establish voter identity during enumeration. Previously, there were 11 prescribed documents for submission with voter forms, and the ECI was instructed to direct its ground officials to accept Aadhaar for identity verification.
The outcome of the October 7 hearing could have far-reaching implications, not just for Bihar’s electoral roll but for voter registration processes nationwide.
