Supreme Court Petitioned to Halt Bihar Electoral Roll Revision
The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an NGO, has challenged the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar before the Supreme Court. The petition argues the process imposes unreasonable documentation requirements and has a short timeline that could disenfranchise lakhs of genuine voters, especially from marginalized communities, ahead of state elections. It claims the move could exclude over three crore voters, disrupting the principle of free and fair elections.
Unpacked:
The ADR is challenging the requirement for voters to provide extensive documentation during the Special Intensive Revision, which they argue could be difficult for many, especially marginalized communities, to produce in a short time frame. These requirements reportedly include proof of citizenship and residency, which not all eligible voters may have readily available.
The Election Commission cites reasons such as outdated voter records due to migration and urbanization, unrecorded deaths, and concerns about illegal immigrants on the rolls. It claims that the revision is necessary to ensure that only eligible Indian citizens vote, upholding electoral integrity ahead of the state elections.
The revision process is being conducted just months before the state elections, with a condensed timeline for verification and documentation. Critics argue this rush may not give voters, especially marginalized groups, sufficient time to comply, leading to mass disenfranchisement and potentially impacting the fairness of the upcoming elections.
Excluding a large number of voters, particularly from marginalized or poor communities, could undermine the legitimacy of the elections, skew representation, and call into question the democratic process. It may also raise doubts about the validity of past and future governments formed based on potentially incomplete voter rolls.