Yogendra Yadav has filed a PIL in the Supreme Court against the ECI’s Bihar voter list revision, calling it “arbitrary and unjust.”
New Delhi: Well-known political analyst and election reform activist Yogendra Yadav has approached the Supreme Court with a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the recent move by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to carry out a “Special Intensive Revision” (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar.
He has raised serious concerns that this process could result in a large number of voters losing their right to vote just before the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.
The PIL has been filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, which gives citizens the right to move the Supreme Court for enforcement of their fundamental rights.
Yadav is asking the Court to immediately stop the ECI’s order, calling it
“manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, and violative of electoral laws.”
According to him, this step by the ECI could unfairly remove the names of lakhs or even crores of people—particularly women, migrant labourers, daily-wage earners, and members of backward and marginalised communities—from the electoral rolls.
In his petition, Yogendra Yadav highlights that the ECI’s order dated June 24 requires all voters—even those who are already registered—to once again submit identification documents.
However, only a fixed list of 11 documents are being accepted, and commonly used proofs such as Aadhaar cards, ration cards, and MGNREGA job cards are not included.
Yadav claims this is highly problematic, especially in rural and poor regions, as many people may not have access to the limited documents being demanded.
If they are unable to submit these by the July 25 deadline, their names could be automatically deleted from the voters’ list.
Yadav argues that this kind of deletion, without proper notice or a chance to explain, is completely unfair and goes against the basic principle of natural justice.
He adds that the process doesn’t even allow voters to defend themselves or be heard before being removed from the rolls.
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This, he says, violates Section 22 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and Rule 21-A of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. Both these laws require proper safeguards before removing any name from the electoral rolls.
The petition also states that this move violates the Constitution—especially Articles 14 and 15, which protect the right to equality and prohibit discrimination, and Article 326, which guarantees the right to vote.
According to Yadav,
“the SIR discriminates against vulnerable groups and infringes upon the fundamental right to vote.”
He also points out the practical problems in carrying out such a massive verification drive during Bihar’s monsoon season.
The state has nearly 7.89 crore voters, and many of them do not possess formal documents like birth certificates or land ownership records. This makes the task even harder and more unfair for poor families.
To further support his argument, Yadav refers to two important judgments by the Supreme Court. One is the KS Puttaswamy judgment of 2017, which recognised the right to privacy as a fundamental right.
The other is the 1995 judgment in Lal Babu Hussein’s case, which stated that the right to vote of a registered voter should not be disturbed casually and must be protected with great care.
He relies on these rulings to argue that registered voters should not be forced to re-prove their identity without a solid reason. He says the principle of continuity in voter registration must be upheld.
The Supreme Court is expected to hear the matter soon and will decide whether the Election Commission’s order should be paused or allowed to continue.
In summary, Yogendra Yadav has asked the Court to urgently intervene to protect the rights of Bihar’s voters, saying the ECI’s revision process is
“manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, and violative of electoral laws.”
He warns that if the current order is not stopped,
“millions of voters—especially women, daily-wage workers, migrants, and marginalised communities—[will be] struck off the rolls unjustly.”
He has strongly criticised the ECI for not accepting documents like Aadhaar, ration cards, and MGNREGA cards, calling this decision unfair.
“Failure to comply by the July 25 deadline,”
the petition says,
“will result in automatic deletion of names without proper notice or hearing—violating the principles of natural justice.”
It concludes that
“the SIR discriminates against vulnerable groups and infringes upon the fundamental right to vote.”
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