Today, On 7th October, in the Bihar SIR Row ,Supreme Court Asks ECI to Reveal 3.66 Lakh Deleted and 21 Lakh Added Voters, and Clarify Whether the Added Names Were Previously Removed or Are New, Seeking Full Transparency in Electoral Roll
New Delhi: The Supreme Court instructed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to provide details regarding 3.66 lakh voters excluded from the final electoral roll, as well as 21 lakh voters added during Bihar’s SIR process.
This directive came amid concerns about the transparency and legality of the electoral roll revision.
In ongoing petitions challenging the SIR in Bihar, the Supreme Court noted apparent confusion about whether the newly added voters were reinstated from those previously removed or if they were entirely new registrants.
A Bench consisting of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi made these comments while hearing petitions that requested the publication of names of the 3.66 lakh voters deleted from the final list and the 21 lakh voters added thereafter.
The Court noted the petitioners’ concern regarding the addition of 21 lakh voters to the final electoral roll, following the deletion of approximately 65 lakh from the initial draft. It remains unclear whether the newly added names correspond to those who were removed or if they are entirely new entries.
The Court inquired,
“There was a 65 lakh deletion which you (Election Commission of India) have published. We said that whoever is dead or moved already but we said if you have deleted someone please put up their data in your district electoral offices. Now from the draft you have got the final list. Final list appears to be an appreciation of numbers. It has gone up from 65. Now there is a confusion. What is the identity of this add on? Is it an add on of the deleted names or add on of independent new names,”
The counsel for the ECI responded that most of the additions are indeed new voters. The Bench suggested that the ECI should present this data to the Court.
Justice Bagchi said,
“You have got the draft list, you have got the final list. The omission is clear. So just call that out and place it before us,”
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing the petitioners, argued that while it would be challenging for each affected individual to appear before the Court, the ECI could easily provide the necessary data.
He asserted,
“There are both additions and deletions. We have to match it with the original list. First 66 lakh were deleted. And how many new people who were not there in the original list have been added. It is very difficult for us to but election commission can do this in one button. But they are not doing it. All these people cannot come to the Supreme Court,”
Earlier, the Court was informed that the SIR had complicated matters, with decisions regarding exclusions not communicated to the public.
Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing one of the petitioners, stated,
“The persons who are deleted 3.66 lakh nobody gets a notice. Nobody gets a reason. There is an appellate provision, but there is no question of appeal because there is no information,”
The SIR was completed on September 30. Compared to 7.89 crore voters on June 24 in Bihar, only 7.42 crore electors remained on the list.
The number of deletions decreased from 65 lakh to 47 lakh.
During today’s hearing, advocate Prashant Bhushan reiterated that the data on deletions and additions should be made available online. He also suggested that psephologist and activist Yogendra Yadav could provide an overview to the Court, to which Justice Bagchi responded that Yadav could submit an affidavit.
Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, representing the ECI, countered that every individual who was deleted had received an order regarding their deletion.
He questioned,
“The draft list is already published. None of them have amended their petitions. Till today, nobody has filed an appeal or complaint. It’s just ADR, PUCL, etc. They are not concerned with the elections. Based on the time schedule which the Act prescribed, the elections have now been fixed in two phases. The schedule will be notified … We borrow staff from States. None of the petitions have been amended. There is no challenge. But they want data. Data for what?”
Advocate Vrinda Grover, also representing the petitioners, remarked that only disaggregated data has been provided.
The Court then stated,
“Somebody must file an affidavit saying that we are the person affected. If I know that my name is not there in the revised voter list, I can file an affidavit,”
Bhushan confirmed that an affidavit would be submitted but noted that not all affected individuals could approach the Supreme Court.
He emphasized,
“We will file the affidavit. This may not be made into a fait accompli. We have showed how … they have deviated from their own rules,”
In response, Justice Kant remarked,
“The question of probing so much will arise when there are some genuine people. At least 100-200 people saying that they want to file an appeal but no order has come to them.”
The matter is scheduled for further hearing on October 9, during which the petitioners are expected to submit an affidavit detailing the deletions.
The Court has been overseeing the Bihar SIR since July of this year.
Earlier, On July 10, the Bench instructed the ECI to accept Aadhaar cards, ration cards, and EPICs as valid forms of identification for voter inclusion. Subsequently, it permitted the publication of the draft electoral rolls on August 1, while cautioning that it would step in if there were instances of “mass exclusion.”
Earlier, On September 8, the court had ordered the Election Commission to accept Aadhaar as proof of identity, adding it to the list of 11 other acceptable documents.
However, it clarified that Aadhaar could not be used to prove citizenship. On Monday, the bench issued a notice regarding the petition for modification and scheduled October 7 for final arguments on the legitimacy of the SIR process.
Earlier, On August 6, the Court learned that 6.5 million names were removed from the draft electoral roll published on August 1. The ECI assured the Court that no names would be removed without prior notice, an opportunity for a hearing, and a reasoned order from the appropriate authority.
The Election Commission of India (ECI), On 24 June 2025, started a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar before the Assembly elections. Under this process, voters were asked to provide updated documents, but many citizens did not have them.
Opposition parties and several NGOs criticised this move, saying it could deprive a large number of genuine voters of their right to vote. They approached the Supreme Court (SC), calling the ECI’s action arbitrary and against the Constitution.
Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, along with others such as RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, participated in a Voter Adhikar Yatra in Bihar to protest what they describe as widespread vote theft aimed at benefiting the BJP, allegedly in collusion with the Election Commission.
The Opposition contends that the Bihar SIR is a significant part of this scheme.
The Commission, On 1 August 2025, released the draft electoral roll, which showed a total of 7.24 crore registered voters. At the same time, around 65 lakh names were removed from the list.
Petitioners, including the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), requested the Supreme Court to order the ECI to make public the full list of voters whose names were dropped, along with the reasons for each deletion. They said that without such transparency, many citizens might lose their right to vote without being given a fair chance to object.
Case Title: ASSOCIATION FOR DEMOCRATIC REFORMS AND ORS. Versus ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA, W.P.(C) No. 640/2025 (and connected cases)
Click Here to Read Previous Reports on Bihar SIR Row