SC on Bihar SIR: If illegality found, entire exercise would be annulled
A Bench consisting of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi scheduled October 7 for the hearing of final arguments regarding the validity of the Bihar SIR
The Supreme Court on Monday (September 15) observed that it assumed the Election Commission (EC), as a constitutional authority, was adhering to the law during the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in the election-bound state of Bihar.
It also warned that if any illegality were to be found, the entire exercise would be annulled.
'Judgment applicable for pan-India SIR'
A Bench consisting of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi scheduled October 7 for the hearing of final arguments regarding the validity of the Bihar SIR, while declining to provide “any piecemeal opinion” on the matter.
Also read: Kerala to begin voter roll revision, sparking fears of Bihar-like exclusion
“Our judgement in Bihar SIR will be applicable for pan-India SIR,” the Bench remarked, clarifying it couldn’t stop the poll panel from conducting a similar exercise for revision of the electoral roll across the country.
The Bench, however, allowed petitioners against the Bihar SIR exercise to also argue on the pan-India SIR on October 7.
The apex court issued notice on a plea that sought to recall its order on September 8, asking the poll commission to include the Aadhaar card as the 12th prescribed document in the Bihar revision exercise.
Also read: Nationwide SIR rollout: EC holds meeting with state CEOs
The hearing over EC’s SIR initiative came after concerns were raised by Opposition parties about the deletion of genuine voters’ names, allegedly without being verified properly.
(With agency inputs)