Supreme Court Allows SIR in Bihar to Continue, Big Relief for EC Ahead of 28 July Hearing
The Supreme court has allowed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to continue SIR in Bihar. This decision was made on 10 July where a bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi refused to cancel the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) that is being done in Bihar before the state assembly elections 2025. But, due to multiple petitions, the matter will be further discussed.
The hearing began on 10 July around 11 am and was halted by mid-day. The Supreme Court judges said that no voter should be removed arbitrarily from the voter list. The next hearing is scheduled on 28 July 2025. This then the Election Commission can continue with the SIR in Bihar.
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ECI Assured That Voters Won’t be Removed Without Due Process
During the hearing, the Election Commission assured that no names will be removed without providing them and opportunity to prove their citizenship. This lead to Supreme Court decision of not stoping the SIR in Bihar. Door-to-Door verification will continue and any problems will be resolved through communication rather than speculation.
Next Supreme Court Hearing on 28 July
The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission to respond within a week. The next hearing is set to be on 28 July which is just 28 days before the draft electoral roll are expected to be finalized.
Until then, the SIR will continue as it is. The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) will include physical verification of voters (door-to-door), checking valid proofs and updating the entries if necessary. The final decision will depend upon Election Commission’s stance and concerns raised by the petitioners.
Petitioners Seek Complete Halt on SIR in Bihar
The petitioners are urging the Supreme Court to issue a complete halt on the SIR in Bihar. They claim that the revision is not regularly done and it has been launched in haste just months before the Bihar assembly elections 2025.
Some Civil Rights Organisations, TMC MP Mahual Moitra have field the petition. They have hired senior experienced lawyers line Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, and Shadan Farasat.
Moitra’s point of concern is that a similar SIR will be soon replicated in other states also. She doesn’t want the same for West Bengal and thus wants the SC to stop it. While some political observers are pointing to the rising number of illegal immigrants in West Bengal and claiming the SIR to be a essential update.
ECI Says Aadhaar Card is NOT Proof of Citizenship
In response to petitioners, the Election Commission has firmly confirmed that the Aadhar Card can not be considered a valid proof for citizenship in India. The EC claims that while it might serve as a proof for identity, it was never intended to confirm nationality of a person.
This is a very critical point this way the revision process becomes becomes a way to question the citizenship of all the people in the state. On other hand, the election commission has said that the SIR in Bihar is just meant to ensure accuracy in the voter list.
Conclusion
The Supreme Court has given a temporary green light to the SIR in Bihar. However, the matter is not settled yet and the next hearing is scheduled on 28 July. More than 10 petitions have been filed raising questions over the implementation and legality of the Special Intensive Revision of voter list in Bihar.
If you want to know about all the news rules for SIR in Bihar, refer to our previous article on the same topic here.
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