Supreme Court Orders EC to Provide Details on 3.66 Lakh Excluded Bihar Voters
The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission of India to furnish details of 3.66 lakh voters who were excluded from the final electoral roll in poll-bound Bihar. The order came during a hearing on petitions from opposition parties challenging the state's Special Intensive Revision exercise. Raising concerns about transparency and due process, the court has asked the poll panel to provide the information by October 9, just weeks before the state's assembly elections are held in November.
Unpacked:
Voters were excluded due to reasons such as death, permanent migration, or duplicate registrations, as identified by the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision. The process aims to update the voter list to reflect current realities, but has led to controversy due to its scale and timing before the elections.
The SIR is a comprehensive process involving house-to-house enumeration to prepare a fresh electoral roll, rather than the usual summary updates. In Bihar’s case, it also introduced new requirements for documentary proof, making it stricter and more complex than past revisions.
Opposition parties argue that the revision could disenfranchise large numbers of eligible voters, potentially impacting election outcomes. They have raised concerns about transparency, due process, and alleged political bias in how names are being removed from the rolls.
Voters can submit claims and objections during a designated period before the final roll is published. If still excluded, they can appeal to the district magistrate and then the chief electoral officer to seek correction and reinstatement.