New Delhi, August 12: The Supreme Court on Tuesday began hearing petitions challenging the Election Commission’s special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing RJD leader Manoj Jha, alleged irregularities, including cases where living voters were marked dead and vice versa.
The EC, represented by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, admitted minor errors but said they could be corrected as the current list is only a draft. The bench, led by Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, asked the EC to provide data on voter counts before and after the revision.
Opposition leaders and activists, including MPs from RJD, TMC, Congress, NCP, CPI, SP, Shiv Sena (UBT), JMM, CPI(ML), as well as NGOs like PUCL and ADR, have opposed the June 24 decision, warning it could disenfranchise crores. The draft roll was released on August 1, with the final list due on September 30. The EC defends the SIR as essential for removing ineligible names and ensuring clean elections.
