Bihar SIR: SC allows excluded voters to submit claims with Aadhaar card or any 11 acceptable docs
The Election Commission of India informed the Supreme Court that around 85,000 individual voters who were excluded from the draft rolls had submitted their claim forms.
The Election Commission of India informed the Supreme Court that around 85,000 individual voters who were excluded from the draft rolls had submitted their claim forms.
The Election Commission of India informed the Supreme Court that around 85,000 individual voters who were excluded from the draft rolls had submitted their claim forms.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Friday asked the Election Commission of India to allow the citizens who are excluded from the draft voters’ list in Bihar to submit their claims online with their Aadhaar card or any 11 acceptable documents. The apex court issued the directive while considering the pleas related to the Bihar Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi also directed the 12 recognised political parties in Bihar to instruct their Booth Level Agents (BLA) to assist the persons in their respective booths for the submission of the forms. The court impleaded all those recognised parties as respondents in the petitions, if they are not already petitioners in the matter.
Meanwhile, the SC pointed out that although there are about 1.6 lakh BLAs of political parties, only two objections came from them. But some parties alleged that some officers did not acknowledge the objections by the BLAs. Responding to this, the apex court directed the Booth Level Officers (BLO) to acknowledge the receipt wherever physical forms are submitted.
Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, for the Election Commission of India, told the court that a compliance affidavit has been filed stating that the lists containing the names of voters excluded from the draft roll, including the reasons of exclusions, have been published on the websites and polling booths as directed by the Court on August 14. He noted that the lists have been shared with the Booth Level Agents of the political parties as well.
When Dwivedi said that no political party has come before the Court, Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Dr AM Singhvi countered. Sibal said that he was representing the RJD MP Manoj Jha from the main opposition party in Bihar. Singhvi said that he was appearing in a petition jointly filed by the representatives of INC, CPI(M), CPI(M-L) Liberation, CPI, NCP, etc.
Following the heated arguments, the bench suggested that any voter should be allowed to submit forms for inclusion online along with their Aadhaar cards or matriculation certificates.
"All the political parties shall file the status report by the next date of hearing on the claim form they had facilitated in filing by excluded voters," the bench said as it posted the matter for September 8.
The Election Commission of India informed the Supreme Court that around 85,000 individual voters who were excluded from the draft rolls had submitted their claim forms, and over 2 lakh new voters had come forward to register their names in the electoral rolls under the SIR exercise in the state.
On August 14, the top court directed the poll panel to publish by August 19 details of the 65 lakh voters excluded from the draft electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar to enhance "transparency" in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voters' list and allow Aadhaar as an acceptable document for identity proof.
Observing that the EC should put at rest the narrative being built against it, the bench had also ordered that the details should include reasons for their non-inclusion during the ongoing SIR exercise. "Transparency will create voter confidence."
The revision of the voters' list in Bihar--the first since 2003--has sparked a huge political row. The SIR's findings have reduced the total number of 7.9 crore registered voters in Bihar, from before the exercise, to 7.24 crore.
(With Live Law inputs)