Supreme Court Declines Stay on Bihar Voter List, Asks ECI to Accept Aadhaar, Ration Card as ID Proof

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to stay the ongoing Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, amid allegations of voter disenfranchisement. However, it directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to accept Aadhaar cards and ration cards as valid identity proofs for the voter verification process. A bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta heard the plea filed by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which alleged that the current enumeration drive was being conducted arbitrarily, risking the deletion of valid voters from the list. While refusing to stay the process, the court emphasized the need for inclusivity and directed the ECI to ensure that voters are not excluded merely due to the lack of certain documents. "You must ensure that people are not left out for lack of a particular document. Aadhaar and ration cards should be treated as valid for this purpose," the bench said.

Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the petitioners, argued that the electoral roll revision exercise was being done in violation of due process, without proper public notification or adherence to existing rules. The petitioners also expressed concern about the upcoming state elections, saying that faulty rolls could affect free and fair polls. Responding to the claims, the ECI maintained that the revision process is being carried out strictly in accordance with established guidelines. It informed the court that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are visiting households and that the exercise includes multiple attempts to contact voters. The court has posted the matter for further hearing next week and asked the ECI to file an affidavit detailing the safeguards being adopted to prevent wrongful deletions. The case comes amid rising political tensions in Bihar ahead of the state elections, with opposition parties accusing the administration of attempting to manipulate voter rolls under the guise of revision.