Voters in Bihar's Vaishali district show the enumeration forms given during the ongoing special intensive revision of electoral rolls. (PTI Photo)Bihar SIR Voter List Row Hearing Highlights: The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to halt the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, where assembly elections are due. A Bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi asked the poll body to consider Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards for updating the rolls.
The Supreme Court hearing: Noting that none of the petitioners including leaders from 10 opposition parties had sought an interim stay on the Election Commission’s exercise, the Supreme Court bench issued notices on the batch of petitions and scheduled the next hearing for July 28. The ECI has been directed to file its counter affidavit by July 21, with rejoinders to be submitted by July 28. While the bench, comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi, offered a prima facie view that documents like Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards could be considered during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, it also questioned the timing of the exercise. The judges clarified they were not doubting the ECI’s credentials or sincerity in fulfilling its constitutional duty, but said the timing of the revision raised concerns.
Who’s challenging the SIR? Over 10 petitions have been filed in the SC, including one by the NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, the lead petitioner. RJD MP Manoj Jha and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, Congress’s K C Venugopal, NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, CPI leader D Raja, Samajwadi Party’s Harinder Singh Malik, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Arvind Sawant, JMM’s Sarfraz Ahmed and Dipankar Bhattacharya of CPI (ML) have also moved the top court, seeking direction for quashing the EC order.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chowdhary welcomed Supreme Court's decision allowing the ECI to continue with its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and asserted that its implementation was necessary to ensure that only Indian citizens were enrolled. - PTI
The Congress said the Supreme Court's suggestion that the Election Commission (EC) should allow Aadhaar cards, voter-ID cards and ration cards in the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls in Bihar has come as a "relief for democracy". Congress general secretary, organisation, K C Venugopal pointed out that the apex court will hear the case again later this month, while expressing hope that the EC will go with the court's suggestion.
- PTI
The Supreme Court refused to stop the Election Commission of India (ECI) from proceeding with the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, where assembly elections are due. The court directed that the matter be listed for hearing again on July 28, before the draft roll is published.
The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the Election Commission of India on the timing of the Special Intensive Revision drive in poll-bound Bihar saying it went to the "root of democracy and power to vote" while rejecting the argument that the poll panel did not have any power to carry it out.
The ECI also justified the exercise and said Aadhaar wasn't a "proof of citizenship".
A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi questioned Dwivedi over the exclusion of Aadhaar card in the SIR drive in Bihar and said the ECI had nothing to do with citizenship of a person and it was the Ministry of Home Affairs' domain.
Dwivedi responded while referring to Article 326 of the Constitution and said every voter has to be an Indian citizen and "Aadhaar card is not proof of citizenship". (PTI)
A recent survey by the Bharat Jodo Abhiyaan in Bihar's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise revealed:
1. Widespread confusion and anxiety among ordinary people.
2. Significant gaps between official claims and ground reality.
3. Many individuals lack required documents, sparking fears of losing voting rights.
The survey, covering 709 potential voters across 8 districts, highlighted the challenges faced by marginalized sections in meeting the documentation requirements.
Bihar's ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has sparked concerns across the state. What's notable is that this exercise differs from previous ones in two significant ways. Firstly, it requires already-enrolled voters to prove their citizenship during the draft roll stage, shifting the burden of proof onto them. This move has led to apprehensions and is set to be discussed in the Supreme Court. Read more.
Bihar's 77,895 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are on the ground, working tirelessly to meet the Election Commission's deadline for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. With a July 25 deadline to upload voter enumeration forms, BLOs face significant challenges, including internet connectivity issues. A recent report highlighted the struggles of residents and BLOs alike, showcasing the difficulties in completing the task on time. Read more.
The Election Commission told the Supreme Court that citizenship is required to be checked for being voter in India under Article 326 of Constitution. To this, the apex court responded, "If you are to check citizenship under SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar, then you should have acted early; it is a bit late."
Justice Dhulia said during the hearing, "If a “special revision” under the Representation of People’s Act calls for a verbal hearing before deletion of a voter from the electoral roll, can it be said that the “intensive” revision must cannot have that process?"
Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi appearing for the Election Commission, told the Court that any intervention at this stage is premature. The Court orally observed that once the electoral roll is prepared, elections could be notified with short notice and once the elections are notified no court would interfere with the process.
Supreme Court Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said in an oral observation that purging non-citizens from the electoral rolls is the prerogative of the Home Ministry, not the Election Commission.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan appearing for the petitioners argued that the preliminary legal issue is that the SIR shifts the burden of proof from the Election Commission to the the voter to prove their eligibility and citizenship.
A partial working day (PWD) bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi was told by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the poll panel, that he has preliminary objections to the petitions.
Besides Dwivedi, senior advocates K K Venugopal and Maninder Singh are representing the EC.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for one of the petitioners, said the revision of electoral rolls can be permitted under the Representation of People Act.
The entire SIR will cover around 7.9 crore citizens, he said, adding that even the voter ID and Aadhaar cards are not being considered. (PTI)
Supreme Court commenced hearing on pleas challenging EC's decision to undertake special intensive revision of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. At the beginning of the hearing, the Election Commission told the SC it has some preliminary objections to pleas challenging special intensive revision of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar.
Normal life was affected across Bihar on Wednesday as the INDIA bloc, led by Rahul Gandhi, hit the streets to enforce a bandh in protest against special intensive revision of electoral rolls ahead of the state assembly polls.
The opposition coalition, known as 'Mahagathbandhan' in the state, had organised the state-wide bandh on the day it was extending support to the nationwide strike called by trade unions to oppose the new labour codes.
Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, flew down to Patna, where he was joined by RJD's Tejashwi Yadav, CPI(M) general secretary MA Baby, CPI's D Raja and CPI(ML) Liberation's Dipankar Bhattacharya.
The INDIA bloc bigwigs had planned to reach the Election Commission office here in a giant procession but were stopped a few yards away, in front of the Shaheed Smarak, built in memory of seven young martyrs of the Quit India Movement, right across the street from the Vidhan Sabha premises. (PTI)
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