THE SUPREME COURT TODAY refused to modify its September 8 interim order directing the Election Commission of India (‘ECI’) to treat Aadhaar card as the 12th document for establishing identity during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (‘SIR’) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said the order was only interim and the question of Aadhaar’s validity as identity proof remained open. The Bench pointed out that other commonly accepted identity documents like ration cards or driving licences were as much prone to forgery and Aadhaar could not be singled out for exclusion.
“Driving licences can be forged, ration cards can be forged. Several documents can be forged. Aadhaar is to be utilised to the extent law permits,” Justice Kant observed.
The Court was hearing an application by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay, who urged the Bench to reconsider its earlier direction. He argued that Aadhaar was not proof of either citizenship or residence since anyone could secure one merely by living in India for 182 days.
Pointing to the alleged large-scale presence of Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants in Bihar, he described the ECI’s reliance on Aadhaar as “disastrous.”
“Disaster or absence of disaster will be considered by the ECI,” the Bench responded, while issuing notice to the poll panel on Upadhyay’s plea. The Court added that since the Commission is a constitutional authority, it was presumed to be acting lawfully. At the same time, the judges cautioned that if any illegality were found, the entire exercise would be set-aside.
“What difference will it make to us if the final list is published? If we are satisfied there is some illegality, we can …,” Justice Kant remarked.
The matter will now be taken up on October 7 for final arguments on the legality of the Bihar SIR. The Court clarified that its eventual ruling would extend beyond Bihar and apply to similar revision drives nationwide.
The Court had earlier declined to extend the deadline of September 1 for submitting claims, objections or corrections in the Bihar roll, after the ECI assured that all objections received thereafter would also be examined before the finalisation of the electoral list.
Multiple petitions have challenged the Commission’s decision to undertake the SIR in Bihar. These were filed by RJD MP Manoj Jha, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), activist Yogendra Yadav, Trinamool MP Mahua Moitra and former Bihar legislator Mujahid Alam.
The petitioners argued that the Commission’s June 24 directive, which required large sections of voters to produce citizenship documents to remain on the rolls, risked widespread disenfranchisement. They also questioned the exclusion of routinely held identity documents like Aadhaar and ration cards, saying such measures would hit the poor and marginalised, particularly in rural areas, the hardest.
