Ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, the Election Commission has launched a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to ensure accuracy and eliminate ineligible entries. This comes after two decades marked by urban migration, duplications, and legal challenges over citizenship verification.
Relevance : GS 2(Elections – Reforms)
Electoral Rolls – Constitutional and Legal Basis
- Article 324: EC has powers over preparation and control of electoral rolls.
- Article 326: All citizens aged 18+ are eligible to be registered as electors.
- Representation of the People Act (RP Act), 1950:
- Section 16: Non-citizens disqualified.
- Section 19: Voter must be 18+ and ordinarily resident.
- Section 20: Defines “ordinarily resident” — excludes property owners not residing there but includes temporary absentees.
- Section 21: Empowers EC to conduct Special Revisions for valid reasons.
Why the SIR in Bihar (2025)?
- Last SIR in Bihar: 2003.
- Massive changes in rolls due to urbanisation, migration, and unverified entries.
- EC aims to ensure only genuine citizens remain on rolls ahead of Assembly elections.
Key Features of the 2025 SIR
- July 1, 2025 as qualifying date.
- Electors must submit enumeration forms to Booth Level Officers (BLOs).
- Pre-2003 voters need no new documents, only 2003 roll extract.
- Post-2003 voters must provide documents proving date & place of birth for self and parents.
Major Controversies & Contentions
Time and Process Burden
- Over 8 crore voters to submit forms; 3 crore+ to provide multiple documents.
- Critics call it a massive and error-prone exercise.
- Supporters cite 2003 SIR done in 31 days without tech; 2025 SIR has 1L BLOs, 4L volunteers, 1.5L Booth Agents.
Aadhaar Exclusion
- EC excluded Aadhaar from valid documents citing legal disclaimer: not proof of citizenship or birth.
- Critics argue Aadhaar is omnibus ID for poor; exclusion creates hardship.
- Form 6 (as per RER 1960) includes Aadhaar, but EC’s SIR guidelines override this with stricter rules.
Migrant Workers
- EC says only “ordinarily resident” citizens should be enrolled in a constituency.
- Critics argue migrants are “temporarily absent” and still qualify; many prefer voting in native constituencies.
- EC previously proposed remote voting for migrants (January 2023), but this remains unimplemented.
Way Forward – Balanced & Inclusive Approach
- EC must extend timelines and adopt a phased strategy to avoid exclusion errors.
- Claims & objections phase should be leveraged to accommodate genuine voters lacking documentation.
- Aadhaar seeding (revived in March 2025) can be used to check duplicate entries, not as sole proof of eligibility.
- Treat exclusion of genuine voters as seriously as inclusion of ineligible ones — both harm democracy.
