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The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to furnish details of 3.66 lakh voters excluded from the final electoral roll prepared under Bihar’s Summary Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, as questions were raised about the transparency and legality of the process.

In the ongoing pleas challenging the SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar, the Supreme Court observed that there appeared to be some confusion regarding whether the voters added in the final electoral list were reinstated from among those deleted earlier or were entirely new entrants.

A Bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi made the observation while hearing petitions seeking publication of the names of 3.66 lakh voters deleted from the final list and 21 lakh voters who were subsequently added. The Court orally directed the ECI to obtain the relevant information and adjourned the hearing till October 9 (Thursday), Live Law reported.

Petitioners Allege Arbitrary Deletions

Appearing for Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), Advocate Prashant Bhushan contended that the SIR process had led to the “disproportionate exclusion of women and Muslims.” He said the revision exercise, instead of cleansing the rolls, had “compounded the problems.”

Bhushan further argued that the ECI had not disclosed reasons for the deletions or published the names of the additional 3.66 lakh voters removed after the draft roll.

When the Bench asked whether deleted voters could not appeal against their removal, Senior Advocate A.M. Singhvi responded that such appeals were impossible “without knowing the reasons” for exclusion.

“Persons who are deleted do not get notice that they are deleted. They don’t get the reasons. There is no question of appeal because no one knows. Least they can do is inform,” Singhvi said.

Supreme Court Seeks Accountability

Defending the Commission, Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi maintained that “deleted persons have been given the orders.” However, Justice Surya Kant observed, “If anyone can give the list of voters out of these 3.66 lakh who have not received orders… we will direct EC to give them orders… everyone has right to appeal.”

Bhushan reiterated his demand that the ECI publish the deleted names on its official website, while Dwivedi countered that no affected voter had approached the Court and that “only politicians and NGOs sitting in Delhi” were raising the issue.

Justice Joymalya Bagchi expressed concern about the clarity of data, noting, “Final list appears to be an appreciation of numbers… there is confusion of general democratic process about what is the identity of the add-ons. Is it an add-on of deleted names or an add-on of independent new names? There will be some new names also.”

Dwivedi clarified that “most of the add-ons are new voters.”

SC Calls for Publication Of Deleted Voters, Proper Process

Bhushan pressed that the list of newly added and deleted voters be made public. Singhvi noted that about 65 lakh persons had been deleted after the publication of the draft roll, and at the time of the final list, the ECI said it had added around 21 lakh voters. However, it remained unclear whether these additions were of previously deleted names or entirely new voters, he said, according to Live Law.

Justice Bagchi urged the Commission to present clear data to strengthen public trust in the electoral process, stating, “This exercise is in aid of the electoral process that you have started, so that the confidence in the electoral process is fortified.”

Bihar SIR Hearing In Supreme Court

The Court has been monitoring the Bihar SIR since July this year. On July 10, the Bench directed the ECI to consider Aadhaar cards, ration cards, and EPICs as valid identity documents for inclusion. It later allowed publication of the draft rolls on August 1, but warned that it would intervene in case of “mass exclusion.”

On August 14, the Court instructed the ECI to upload details of the 65 lakh excluded voters on the Bihar CEO’s website and district portals, including reasons for their exclusion. Subsequently, on September 8, it clarified that Aadhaar may be used as the “12th document” for identity verification in the revision process, though it would not serve as proof of citizenship.

As the case continues, the Supreme Court has now asked the ECI to collate and present comprehensive data distinguishing between deleted and newly added voters in Bihar’s final electoral rolls. Further hearing is set to take place on Thursday.