Bihar SIR case: LIVE UPDATES from Supreme Court

The Supreme Court is hearing a batch of petitions challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) June 24 directive for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi is hearing the matter.

The petitioners have raised concerns that the SIR process permits arbitrary deletion of voters without adequate safeguards, potentially disenfranchising lakhs of citizens and undermining free and fair elections.

The ECI has defended its directive, asserting that it is empowered to undertake such an exercise and that the revision is crucial to ensure that only eligible citizens are included in the electoral rolls ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections.

One of the issues that the Court is considering has been the list of documents that may be accepted by the Election Commission to verify the identity of voters to retain their names in the electoral list.

On July 10, the top court had urged the Election Commission to consider Aadhaar, ration card and electoral photo identity card (EPIC card) as admissible documents for this verification exercise.

The Commission, however, later submitted an affidavit stating that neither Aadhaar cards nor ration cards can be treated as proof of eligibility to vote.

The petitioners have challenged the exclusion of these documents as absurd.

More recently, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), which is a petitioner, filed an interim application urging the Court to direct the ECI to disclose details of 65 lakh names dropped from a draft Bihar electoral roll published on August 1 as part of the SIR.

On August 14, the Court asked the ECI to upload online this list of 65 lakh voters proposed to be deleted from the electoral roll and disclose reasons for such proposed deletion.

On August 22, the Court added that people excluded from the draft electoral roll can submit Aadhaar card along with the requisite form to object to their exclusion.

On September 1, the Court requested the chairperson of the Bihar State Legal Services Authority to depute para legal volunteers to assist voters and political parties in submitting online claims, objections or corrections to the electoral rolls.

However, the Court refrained from issuing any direction to extend the deadline for submitting such claims beyond September 1.

This was after the ECI assured that even objections sent after September 1 would be considered before the electoral roll is finalised.

Live updates from the hearing today feature here.

Hearing begins.

Justice Kant: There is a plea by Vaibhav Mishra now.

Sr Adv Kapil Sibal: Is Aadhaar acceptable not acceptable? We are racing against time. What they are doing is shocking. We have prepared a note.

Sibal: On July 10, the court said ECI should consider Aadhaar, EPIC issued by ECI and ration cards.

Justice Kant: What you want Aadhaar card to be accepted as? Conclusive proof of citizenship?

Sibal: Booth Level Officers (BLO) can't decide citizenship. Proof of residence. They are not accepting Aadhaar for 65 lakhs also. ECI has directed the officials. Let Aadhaar be accepted if I am on voter list. By another order of SC.. public notice had to state that grievance to be submitted along with their Aadhaar cards. It was said take Aadhaar into account. They are refusing to take Aadhaar into account. BLOs instructed that one of the 11 documents needed. ECI penalising officers for accepting documents outside the 11.

Sibal: Show cause notices have been issued by ECI to officers for accepting Aadhaar.

Justice Kant: Show us the show cause notice.

Sibal: Right away.

Sr Adv Rakesh Dwivedi (for ECI): We don't have this.

Sibal: It is your document. Come on. Signed by electoral registration officer.

Sr Adv Kapil Sibal: (Read the notice). They say no other document apart from 11 and no Aadhaar. This is despite three orders of this court.

Bench discusses.

Sibal: Disciplinary action has been initiated against the BLOs. Now they say Aadhaar will not be accepted. The document which is universal in nature not being accepted. There are 24 affidavits of electors from separate districts saying the same thing.

Justice Kant: There is an exercise going on. Can you rely only on Aadhaar?

Sibal: I am on the rolls of 2025... now they say only 11 documents and no Aadhaar.

Sr Adv Rakesh Dwivedi: Aadhaar can be filed. It can be digitally uploaded and online also it can be done. The only thing is we are not considering Aadhaar as a proof of citizenship. We are refuting the submission of the other side...that ECI does not have the power to determine citizenship issue for the purpose of electoral rolls. I can show provision of Constitution.

Justice Bagchi: Why does this showcause refer to only the 11 documents. We want clarification because we have passed orders saying this list is an illustrative list. Apart from passport and birth certificate none are conclusive proof of citizenship.

Sr Adv Dwivedi: We will find out who is the errant officer here.

Justice Bagchi: Aadhaar can be given as resident identity. I am sure you will not argue that Aadhaar is alien to the Representation of People Act and the Act also shows the document as document of identity.

Dwivedi: Not citizenship.

Sibal: Send a circular. That's all.

Dwivedi: Please decide this. Every time they will stand up and say we cannot determine citizenship.

Adv Ashwini Upadhyay: All these Aadhaar cards have been forged by paying Rs 1,000. All these Rohingyas and Bangladeshis.

Justice Bagchi: Read the RPA. Identity of residence is determined by Aadhaar.

Adv Vrinda Grover: Only the poor is being eliminated.

Dwivedi: We know who is the poor here.

Justice Kant: Those who are citizens of this country are entitled to vote. Those on forged documents will be excluded.

Order: The short issue which requires clarification is acceptability and validity of Aadhaar card. As per the aadhaar act.. it is not a proof of citizenship. But as per the RPA aadhaar is one of the documents which establishes identity of the individual. ECI says aadhaar card shall also be taken into consideration to determine identity and see exclusion and inclusion of individuals in the revised voter list.

Sr Adv Gopal Sankaranarayanan: This needs to be the 12th document. All earlier orders not followed.

Dwivedi: How can we equate it with a passport.

Sankarnarayanan: But land agreement and rent agreement.

Justice Bagchi: ECI manual specifies documents which are proof of citizenship.. passport and birth certificate. Simple. You have gone beyond they and made it 11.

SC: ECI undertakes that necessary notification shall be issued by tomorrow to give this effect to.

Sibal: This has to be the 12th document. They are saying apart from 11 nothing will be accepted. 9 out of 11 are not citizenship documents.

Dwivedi: 99.6 percent of 7.24 crore have already submitted documents. Last order allowed Aadhaar for 65 lakhs. Now for them .. none of the petitioners have pointed out that large number was falsely excluded.

Sibal: There are huge errors. We have so much more to say.

Dwivedi: Now RJD plea shows 233 exclusions.

Justice Kant: Nobody is asking illegal immigrants to be allowed. We know Aadhaar is proof of identity and not citizenship. Suppose this is 12th document, what is the issue?

Order: Aadhaar card issued under Aadhaar Act 2016 shall be accepted for the purpose of establishing identity of the exclusion or inclusion being carried out in the revised electoral list process and that it shall be treated as the 12th document. However, officers can verify the genuineness of the card so presented and the Aadhaar card shall not be treated as a proof of citizenship. ECI shall issue instructions during the course of the day. List on next Monday.