NEW DELHI: A significant legal battle is set to unfold in the Supreme Court today as a batch of petitions challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) “Special Intensive Revision” (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar comes up for hearing. The petitioners, including Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, transparency advocacy group Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), and activist Yogendra Yadav, have termed the exercise “arbitrary” and “unconstitutional.”
The controversy stems from the ECI’s directive for a comprehensive revision of Bihar’s voter lists ahead of the assembly elections slated for October-November this year. While electoral roll revisions are a regular feature across India, the petitioners contend that this specific SIR is unprecedented in its scope, demanding that all existing electors re-prove their eligibility.
Mahua Moitra, in her petition, has argued that the ECI’s order violates constitutional provisions and the Representation of People (RP) Act, 1950. She expressed concerns that this “unprecedented” exercise, which requires voters to furnish extensive documentation, could disproportionately affect economically and socially vulnerable communities, resembling the implications of an NRC (National Register of Citizens). The petitioners also question the timing of the SIR, just months before the state polls, alleging it could lead to large-scale disenfranchisement of genuine voters.
The ECI, on its part, has defended the SIR, stating its objective is to ensure the purity and accuracy of electoral rolls by including all eligible citizens and removing ineligible entries, including those of deceased or shifted voters, and alleged illegal immigrants. The Commission has cited rapid urbanization, migration, and the need to weed out duplicate entries as reasons for the intensive revision, the first such exercise in Bihar since 2003.
The Supreme Court’s decision today will be keenly watched, as it could have significant implications for the upcoming Bihar elections and the future of electoral roll management in the country.
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