New Delhi, July 28: The Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the publication of draft electoral rolls under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) ordered by the Election Commission (EC) in poll-bound Bihar, while directing the poll panel to accept Aadhaar and voter ID cards as valid identity documents during the ongoing exercise.
The EC’s SIR schedule states that the draft voter list will be released on August 1, with both printed and digital copies made available to all 12 registered political parties. It will also be published on the website of the Chief Electoral Officer, allowing public access.
A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, hearing over a dozen Public Interest Litigations (PILs) against the SIR process, said it would fix the schedule for final hearings on July 29. The court underlined that it intended to dispose of the matter decisively instead of issuing piecemeal interim orders.
The Bench emphasised the need for “mass inclusion, not mass exclusion,” in the electoral roll revision process, noting that while ration cards are susceptible to forgery, Aadhaar and voter ID cards enjoy a higher presumption of genuineness. “You will include these two documents… Any document can be forged, but that doesn’t mean you don’t accept them. Deal with forgery case-by-case,” Justice Kant told the counsel for the Election Commission.
Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the EC, informed the court that Aadhaar was being accepted — but only in conjunction with another supporting document.
The court’s direction came as several NGOs and political parties raised concerns about possible disenfranchisement. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing one such NGO, had urged the court to stay the publication of the draft rolls. But the Bench rejected the request, pointing out that the petitioners had not pressed for interim relief earlier. “It does not take away our power… Trust us, if we find anything wrong, we will quash everything,” the court added.
Multiple petitioners — including the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and the People’s Union for Civil Liberties — have alleged that the SIR could result in the exclusion of up to three crore voters in Bihar, especially from vulnerable and migrant populations.
In its response, the EC defended its decision to exclude Aadhaar, voter ID and ration cards as standalone documents for eligibility verification, stating that these do not sufficiently satisfy the constitutional requirements under Article 326. It described the petitions as speculative and aimed at building a “narrative of exclusion” based on media reports.
The Commission maintained that the SIR was necessary and overdue — the first such exercise since 2003 — given the rapid urbanisation, demographic changes, unreported deaths, and instances of illegal immigration. It said more than 1.5 lakh booth-level agents had been deployed, and political parties were already involved in the on-ground verification process, despite some challenging the process in court.
However, ADR, in its rejoinder affidavit, called the EC’s stance “patently absurd,” arguing that Aadhaar and ration cards are government-issued and widely used to access essential services, and their exclusion from the SIR process lacked valid justification.
The outcome of the final hearings starting July 29 will have significant political and legal implications, especially as Bihar heads into elections. For now, the EC has the green light to proceed with its planned release of the draft electoral rolls — but under closer judicial scrutiny.
