Aadhaar not sole proof of citizenship in voter rolls, must be verified: SC

Business Standard

2 days ago

The Supreme Court today agreed with the Election Commission of India (ECI) that the Aadhaar card cannot be treated as final proof of citizenship and must be independently verified.
A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi made this observation while hearing petitions against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
'The Election Commission is correct in saying that Aadhaar can't be accepted as conclusive proof of citizenship; it has to be verified. See Section 9 of the Aadhaar Act,' Justice Kant told senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who appeared for the petitioners, as reported by Bar and Bench.
The judge also said, 'Are petitioners saying that an Aadhaar card is proof of citizenship? They are not saying that it is not a measure… the Aadhaar Act says so.'
The court is examining whether the ECI has the legal power to carry out this verification exercise. Justice Kant remarked, 'If they don't have the power, everything ends. But if they have the power, there can't be a problem.' The petitions challenge the ECI's June 24 order to conduct the SIR in Bihar.
Petitioners fear mass deletions
Speaking for the petitioners, Sibal argued that the ECI's process could lead to large-scale voter exclusions, especially for those unable to submit the required forms. He argued, even voters from the 2003 rolls had to fill fresh forms, and failure to do so would lead to deletion, even without a change in residence, the news report said.
Sibal pointed to ECI data showing 72.4 million forms submitted, but about 6.5 million names were excluded without proper checks on deaths or migration. 'They admit in their affidavit that they did not conduct any survey,' he told the court.
The Bench asked how the 6.5 million figure was calculated and whether this fear was based on facts or just an assumption. It noted that those who submitted forms were already in the draft rolls.
Missing voter data allegations
Sibal mentioned that there were 79 million voters in the 2025 list, with 49 million from the 2003 list, and that 2.2 million were recorded as dead.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, also appearing for the petitioners, alleged the ECI had not made public the list of voters removed due to death or change of residence. 'They say they have given some information to booth-level agents, but claim they are not obliged to give it to anyone else,' he told the SC Bench. The court said that if a voter provides an Aadhaar and a ration card, the ECI must verify the details.
ECI's defence on SIR
The ECI has defended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), citing its powers under Article 324 of the Constitution and Section 21(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. It said the revision was essential due to urban migration, demographic changes, and outdated rolls that had not been intensively revised for nearly 20 years.
The commission maintained that the SIR would ensure only eligible citizens were on the rolls before the Bihar Assembly elections.
On July 10, the court had asked the ECI to consider Aadhaar, ration card, and EPIC card for verification. Later, the ECI filed an affidavit stating neither Aadhaar nor a ration card could prove eligibility to vote. The petitioners have called this 'absurd'.