The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to publish the names of around 65 lakh people whose names have been deleted from the draft voter list of Bihar, along with the reasons for their deletion.
“Supreme Court asks Election Commission of India to publicly display at district electoral officer website, the list of approximately 65 lakh persons excluded or deleted from Bihar draft electoral voters list along with reason for their deletion,” ANI reported.
The Supreme Court has also directed the Election Commission of India to publicise the information through local newspapers, Doordarshan, radio, and official social media channels.
SIR in Bihar | Supreme Court asks Election Commission of India to publicly display at district electoral officer website, the list of approximately 65 lakh persons excluded or deleted from Bihar draft electoral voters list along with reason for their deletion.
Supreme Court…
— ANI (@ANI) August 14, 2025
The apex court further ordered that the booth-wise list of 65 lakh individuals be displayed at all Panchayat Bhawans, as well as Block Development and Panchayat offices, to ensure people have manual access to the details.
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi issued these directions while hearing multiple petitions contesting the Election Commission of India’s June 26 order regarding the SIR in Bihar.
Association For Democratic Reforms Plea To Supreme Court
The Supreme court’s order comes after the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) approached the apex court seeking two specific directions to the Election Commission of India (ECI): first, to issue constituency-wise and booth-wise list of voters left out from the electoral rolls, including reasons such as death, permanent transfer, duplication or missing; and second, to disclose the names of voters whose enumeration forms were marked as “not recommended” by the booth level officers (BLOs).
ECI Response To The Plea
In its affidavit before the court, the ECI opposed the plea, arguing that neither the Representation of the People Act, 1950, nor the Registration of Voters Rules, 1960, requires the preparation or publication of such a list.
The Commission said it is not obliged to prepare or share a separate record of persons left out from the draft electoral rolls or to give reasons for such exclusion. It further stated that any eligible voter left out of the draft roll can submit Form 6, along with a declaration, during the claim-objection period, which runs from August 1 to September 1, to seek inclusion.
According to the EC, submission of this form confirms that the applicant is neither deceased, nor has permanently relocated, nor are their whereabouts unknown. The Commission further clarified that exclusion from the draft roll does not mean deletion of name from the final voter list, as the draft roll only reflects the receipt of the duly filled enumeration form during the enumeration stage.
Around 65 lakh names were removed from Bihar’s draft electoral rolls during the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in 2025.
(With IANS Inputs)
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