‘Bihar SIR exposé videos capture systemic forgery’ | Capital Beat

In this episode of Capital Beat, host Neelu Vyas is joined by Supreme Court lawyer Mehmood Pracha, Justice Kolse Patil, and Dr Pyarelal Garg, a noted election data scientist, to examine the explosive exposé by journalist Ajit Anjum.

Anjum’s videos suggest widespread irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process of electoral rolls in Bihar. From booth-level officers (BLOs) signing forms in the absence of voters, to allegations of forgery and official silence, the panel raised grave questions about the integrity of India’s electoral process.

Viral video that shook Bihar

Anjum’s most recent video shows a room full of BLOs purportedly signing enumeration forms, allegedly on behalf of voters. Dr Garg, citing the Electors Registration Rules, highlighted how signatures were being made in sections of Form 60 reserved strictly for electors. “This is clear evidence. The BLOs are signing on the reverse side—where only voters are supposed to sign,” said Dr Garg, who has reviewed the footage extensively.

Also read: Bihar voter list SIR: Chandrababu Naidu objects; trouble in NDA?

He argued that the video captures what appears to be a systemic forgery. “If the Election Commission (EC) is confident these are valid, let the District Returning Officer of Patna upload the forms publicly. We’ll demonstrate the signatures are fake,” he challenged.

EC’s credibility under scrutiny

Dr Garg didn’t stop at the videos. He accused the EC of issuing misleading statements to the public. “First, they say only one form is being issued, then they claim receipts are given to voters—but there’s no sign of any. Their press release from July 10 says 7.9 crore forms were printed. Where are the receipts and the double forms then?” he asked.

Referring to other videos and reports, including one by Aaj Tak, he added, “Supervisors are telling BLOs not to visit homes. Just sit at home, fill out forms, and upload them. This is not democracy—it’s deception.”

Where is the accountability?

Justice Kolse Patil called the exposé an indictment of constitutional institutions. “Where are the state election authorities? Why is there no police action despite such visual evidence?” he asked. He laid the blame squarely on the central government. “All institutions today act under the command of Modi and Shah. That’s the hard truth.”

Justice Patil emphasised the need for judicial intervention. “Courts can stop this instantly. But instead, petitions are delayed. I appeal to Supreme Court judges to remember their duty to the Constitution,” he said.

Watch: ‘Likely intent behind Bihar voter roll revision is to shrink electorate’ | Capital Beat

Broken legal framework?

Pracha went a step further, calling the entire SIR exercise “wholly illegal”. He explained that the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) has only one duty under Article 326 of the Constitution—to register eligible voters. “This parallel process has no legal basis. It is a manufactured tool to distort voter lists, clearly helping the RSS-BJP ecosystem,” he asserted.

Praising Anjum's investigative work, Pracha added, “His videos are like mock polls—a testing sample. If he found this level of forgery in just a few booths, imagine what’s happening across 77,000 polling stations.”

Is this the end of SIR?

Addressing Vyas’ question about whether these instances could be excused as administrative pressure rather than malicious intent, Pracha disagreed. “If someone else signs on your behalf, that’s forgery. BLOs are under pressure, yes, but that doesn’t make the act legal,” he said.

He criticised the EC for failing to uphold transparency. “They claim to assist voters door-to-door, but the reality is the opposite. Their lies have caught up with them. And now, instead of accountability, they are targeting the messenger.”

Also read: Bihar voter list SIR reveals ‘large number of’ Nepalis, Bangladeshis, claims report

Role of courts

Asked whether the Supreme Court will act on the exposé, Pracha was blunt: “I don’t think so. We haven’t seen even one verdict in the last 10 years that truly protected public interest or safeguarded the Constitution.”

He cited the Chandigarh Mayor case as a precedent where CCTV evidence was accepted, arguing that Anjum’s footage, too, is “more than enough” to take legal action. “Yet, I remain pessimistic,” he said, citing a decade-long pattern of judicial inaction.

Citizenship under threat?

Dr Garg concluded the discussion by warning that the SIR exercise in Bihar risks painting ordinary citizens as “illegal immigrants.” Pracha echoed this concern, pointing to procedural lapses and the burden placed on citizens to prove identity. “You expect a poor, uneducated voter to fetch documents from ration or passport offices? That’s the ERO’s job, not theirs,” he said.

Also read: EC’s Bihar SIR inconsistent with law, raises many questions: PDT Achary

The panel agreed: what began as a bureaucratic revision has now morphed into an electoral credibility crisis. Unless the EC takes swift, transparent corrective measures, trust in the system could collapse entirely.

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