Bihar SIR: Supreme Court Allows Excluded Voters To Use Aadhaar Card As Residence Proof, Pulls Up Political Parties

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday allowed Bihar voters, whose names were excluded from the draft electoral roll, to submit online applications for inclusion, besides making physical submissions in the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said that any of the eleven documents mentioned by the Election Commission of India (ECI) or an Aadhaar card can be used residence proof.

The observation was made while hearing petitions contesting the 'special intensive revision' (SIR) of the voter list.

The apex court also pulled up political parties' inaction in not coming forward with the correction of names of deleted voters in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in poll-bound Bihar.

The SC took note of ECI’s submission that 85,000 new voters have come forward in SIR of Bihar, and only two objections have been filed by booth-level agents of political parties.

The SC directed all 12 political parties in Bihar to issue specific directions to party workers to assist people in filing and submitting of requisite forms with any 11 documents in Form 6 or Aadhaar Card.

"What we are surprised to see is that 1.6 lakh BLAs have so far filed only two objections. On the other hand, some political parties submitted that the BLAs are not being permitted to submit their objections," the Court said as reported by Live Law. The top court also directed BLOs to acknowledge the receipt in cases where applications were submitted in physical forms.

Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the poll panel, urged the court to give the ECI a 15-day window to show there was no exclusion.

"The political parties are making hue and cry and things are not bad. Repose faith in us and give us some more time. We will be able to show you there are no exclusions," Dwivedi said.

The ECI informed the bench that around 85,000 individual voters who were excluded in draft rolls had submitted their claim forms and over 2 lakh new voters had come forward to register their names in the electoral rolls under the SIR exercise in the state.

On August 14, the top court directed the poll panel to publish by August 19 details of the 65 lakh voters excluded from the draft electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar to enhance "transparency" in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voters' list and allow Aadhaar as an acceptable document for identity proof.

Notably, the Opposition is targeting the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre over the Bihar SIR. Opposition leaders are questioning the timing of the exercise.