Bihar SIR: No deletion of name from draft roll without notice, ECI tells SC; addresses doubts

Time of India

3 days ago

File photo
The
Election Commission
of India (ECI) on Saturday told the
Supreme Court
that no voter's name will be deleted from the draft electoral roll in Bihar without prior notice, an opportunity to be heard, and a reasoned order.
The poll panel also said the statutory framework does not require it to prepare or share a separate list of people not included in the draft rolls, or publish the reasons for non-inclusion of anyone.
The EC filed an additional affidavit in the apex court on Saturday, days after releasing the draft electoral rolls for Bihar. The draft listed 7.24 crore voters but left out more than 65 lakh names, claiming most had either died or migrated.
Separately, the EC filed its reply to a petitioner's application seeking directions to publish a full and final constituency and booth-wise list of around 65 lakh electors whose enumeration forms were not submitted, along with reasons for non-submission.
A bench headed by Justice Surya Kant is hearing pleas against the EC's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
In its affidavit, the EC said the first stage of SIR was completed and the draft electoral roll was published on August 1.
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"It is further submitted that, as a matter of policy and in strict adherence to the principles of natural justice, no deletion of any elector's name from the draft electoral roll, published on August 1, 2025, shall be undertaken without: (i) issuance of a prior notice to the concerned elector indicating the proposed deletion and the grounds thereof, (ii) affording a reasonable opportunity of being heard and furnishing relevant documents, and (iii) passing of a reasoned and speaking order by the competent authority," it said.
It said these safeguards are reinforced by a two-tier appeal mechanism under the rules to ensure every elector has adequate recourse against adverse action.
The EC said it has issued strict directions to prevent any deletion without notice and a speaking order, with provision for appeals under section 24 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
In a separate reply, the poll panel said, "It is submitted that the statutory framework does not require the respondent (EC) to prepare or share any separate list of names of people not included in the draft electoral rolls, or publish the reasons for non-inclusion of anyone in the draft electoral rolls for any reason".
"As neither the law nor guidelines provide for preparation or sharing of any such list of previous electors whose enumeration form is not received for any reason during the enumeration phase, no such list can be sought by the petition as a matter of right," it said.
The EC said exclusion from the draft roll does not mean a person has been deleted from the electoral rolls. It said the draft simply showed that an enumeration form had been received during the enumeration phase.
"But, on account of human involvement in execution of this exercise of scale, there is always a possibility that an exclusion or inclusion might surface due to inadvertence or error," it said.
The commission said that before publishing the draft rolls, it directed the CEO and others to share with political parties the booth-level list of people whose enumeration forms were not received, and to seek their help in reaching out to them.
It alleged that the petitioner's approach was in line with earlier attempts to malign the EC by spreading false narratives on digital, print and social media.
"Such attempts should be appropriately dealt with by this court, and heavy costs should be imposed for petitioner's attempts to deliberately mislead this court," it said.
The EC said that after the draft rolls were published, political parties were given an updated list of names not included in the draft rolls.
"The political parties have acknowledged receipt of the said list," it said.
The commission also told the court, "In yet another attempt to mislead this court, the petitioners emphatically assert that a person whose name has been excluded from the draft roll has no recourse to a remedy as he/she cannot file a claim or objection".
Citing the SIR order of June 24, it said the guidelines allow inclusion of people whose enumeration forms were not submitted within the specified time.
On August 6, the Supreme Court had asked the EC to provide by August 9 the details of around 65 lakh electors left out of the draft rolls.
The NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, which has challenged the EC's June 24 SIR order, has filed a fresh application seeking publication of the names of the 65 lakh excluded voters along with reasons such as death, migration, or other grounds.