Supreme Court to Hear Pleas Challenging Bihar Electoral Roll Revision on August 12 and 13
NEW DELHI, India – July 29, 2025: A batch of petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of electoral rolls in Bihar undertaken by the Election Commission of India (ECI) will be heard at a comprehensive hearing on August 12 and 13, 2025, as announced by the Supreme Court of India today. The proceedings will be presided over by a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, who assured petitioners of court intervention should any “mass exclusion” of eligible voters be demonstrated to their satisfaction. This becomes significant against the backdrop of concerns regarding the mass exclusion of voters from the draft electoral roll.
Concerns Over Voter Exclusion
The petitions brought forward by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Jha via Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal and the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) via Advocate Prashant Bhushan have cast serious doubts about the SIR process ongoing in Bihar. It is alleged that nearly 65 lakh (6.5 million) people have been excluded from the draft electoral roll, with the ECI claiming that they are dead or have shifted their residences permanently.
The petitioners argue that those who have been excluded would have to apply afresh for consideration to be put on the electoral rolls, and it will be virtually impossible to figure out if genuine voters are being kept away from the electoral roll without any knowledge of who has been left out.
Court’s Stance and ECI’s Position
While allowing the ECI to proceed with the publication of the draft electoral roll on August 1, 2025, the Supreme Court reiterated its commitment to closely monitor the process. Justice Kant remarked, “If there is mass exclusion, we will step in. Bring 15 people saying they are alive but left out.” The court also made it clear that this body, constituted by the Constitution, is expected to act in accordance with the law.
The ECI, with Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi appearing, is firm that the purpose of the SIR exercise is to keep the voter rolls clean through the removal of names of those who are ineligible. Dwivedi told the court about a time frame of 30 days in which people can file objections after the publication of the draft list, with a view toward corrections and inclusion, and said that the final electoral roll should be ready by September 15, 2025.
Background of the SIR Exercise
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) began for Bihar’s electoral rolls on June 24, 2025. The Election Commission described that extensive drive; house-to-house verification was undertaken by Booth Level Officers (BLOs), and enumeration forms were collected. According to internal data from ECI for Phase I of SIR (June 24 to July 25), almost 22 lakh electors were found to be dead, 7 lakh were duplicate entries, and 36 lakh had either permanently migrated or could not be traced.
The Supreme Court had previously urged the ECI to consider accepting documents like Aadhaar cards, Elector’s Photo Identity Cards (EPIC), and ration cards as validity proofs for voter verification, which the petitioners allege is not continuously being attended to. The ECI has clarifications that the EPIC number is already included in the Enumeration form.
Implications for Bihar Assembly Elections
With Bihar Assembly elections due later this year (November 2025), holding elections with integrity and without bias on the part of the electoral roll must be ensured. It is alleged by the opposition that the ECI is rapidly going with the revision, which they fear will disenfranchise large groups of communities. The Supreme Court setting a detailed hearing for August 12 and 13 makes it clear the judiciary intends to have a vital role in the electoral process of fair play and in a transparent manner.
