SC to hear multiple pleas against EC's Bihar voter list revision on July 10

The Supreme Court will hear multiple petitions on July 10 challenging the Election Commission's special voter list revision in Bihar ahead of elections, citing concerns over fairness and feasibility

The Supreme Court is set to hear a clutch of petitions on Thursday challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI’s) decision to conduct a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, where Assembly elections are due later this year.

 

According to the apex court’s updated causelist, a bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi will take up more than 10 related petitions on July 10, Press Trust of India reported.

 

On July 10, the court will also hear a new plea filed by social activists Arshad Ajmal and Rupesh Kumar. They argue that the ECI’s move threatens the core values of free and fair elections and representative democracy, which form part of the Constitution’s basic structure. They have challenged what they call “arbitrary, unreasonable and disproportionate” documentation requirements concerning birth, residence and citizenship.

 

Support for electoral roll revision

Meanwhile, lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay has filed a separate plea supporting the ECI’s decision. He has asked the court to direct the Commission to proceed with the SIR, arguing that it would ensure only Indian citizens influence the country’s democratic processes — not “illegal foreign infiltrators”.

 

“Demography of 200 districts and 1,500 tehsils has changed after Independence due to massive illegal infiltration, deceitful religious conversion and population explosion. Demography is destiny, and dozens of districts have already seen their destiny being shaped by those who aren’t Indians,” Upadhyay said.

Petitioners raise concerns

On July 7, the bench agreed to hear the petitions after submissions by senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing several petitioners including Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Member of Parliament Manoj Jha. Sibal urged the court to issue notice to the ECI, stating that the task was “impossible” to complete within the given timeframe, as elections are expected in November.

 

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for another petitioner, highlighted the scale of the exercise, stating that half of Bihar’s 80 million voters would be required to submit documents.

 

“The timeline is so strict, and if by July 25 you don’t submit the documents, you will be out,” Singhvi said.

 

Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan told the court that the ECI was not accepting Aadhaar or voter ID cards as valid proof for the process.

 

Justice Dhulia noted that the timeline might not carry legal weight, since the election schedule had not yet been officially announced. The bench also instructed the petitioners to give prior notice to the counsel representing the ECI.

Opposition leaders join challenge

Several political leaders have jointly moved the Supreme Court against the ECI’s decision. These include Manoj Jha (RJD), Mahua Moitra (All India Trinamool Congress), K C Venugopal (Congress), Supriya Sule (NCP – Sharad Pawar faction), D Raja (CPI), Harinder Singh Malik (Samajwadi Party), Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena – UBT), Sarfraz Ahmed (JMM), and Dipankar Bhattacharya (CPI-ML).

 

They have sought the quashing of the ECI’s order for SIR in Bihar. Jha’s petition, filed through advocate Fauzia Shakil, argues that the ECI’s June 24 order violates Articles 14 (right to equality), 21 (right to life and liberty), 325 (non-discrimination in electoral rolls) and 326 (universal adult franchise) of the Constitution.

 

The plea states: “While the ECI has decided to commence the SIR across the country, the process has been initiated first in the state of Bihar, owing to the upcoming elections in the latter part of the year.

 

“The impugned order prescribes a schedule and requires the submission of enumeration forms within 30 days, followed by filing of claims and objections and their disposal within 30 days.”

 

Jha further argued that the process is being launched during the rainy season, “when many districts in Bihar are affected by floods and the local population is displaced, thereby making it extremely difficult and almost impossible for a large section of the population to meaningfully participate in the process”.

Impact on migrant workers

The petition also highlights the impact on migrant workers, many of whom are listed on the 2003 electoral rolls but are unlikely to return to Bihar in time to complete the formalities — raising the risk of their names being automatically removed.

 

Jha contended that the strict deadlines render the process unreasonable and unworkable. Meanwhile, Mahua Moitra has asked the court to bar the ECI from initiating similar SIR exercises in other states.