The Supreme Court, while hearing pleas related to Bihar’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, remarked that the Election Commission of India (ECI) is fully aware of its constitutional responsibilities and must ensure that the final voter list is published only after due verification of all additions and deletions.
4A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi directed that the ECI’s latest affidavit be shared with all petitioners, allowing them time to file their rejoinders before the next hearing.
The Court emphasized that although the elections are approaching, transparency in the electoral process cannot be compromised. It stated that the “frozen” final roll should be made public before it is finalized to allow for adequate scrutiny. The petitioners, represented by senior advocates Prashant Bhushan and Gopal Sankaranarayanan, argued that significant changes had been made in booth allocations and constituency lists without publishing the frozen voter roll at the critical stage when public verification was necessary. They also contended that deletions were still being carried out even after the draft list had been published, reducing the opportunity for objections.
The Election Commission, through senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, defended the revision process, stating that it was conducted in accordance with law and aimed at correcting discrepancies in Bihar’s electoral rolls, which previously showed more registered voters than the state’s adult population. He assured the Court that all modifications were being handled as per established procedures and that the final list would be released once the mandatory freeze period begins. The matter will be heard again on November 4.
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