The Supreme Court of India’s pointed observations on Thursday (July 10, 2025) regarding Bihar’s ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls are a crucial course correction for the Election Commission of India (ECI), which it must heed immediately. By urging the ECI to consider including the Aadhaar, the Elector Photo Identity Card, and the ration card among the acceptable documents for identity verification, the Court has acknowledged the critique of the SIR that the 11 documents listed for verification are a restrictive and unnecessary barrier to voter registration. The Court has nudged the ECI toward inclusivity in a way that could help resolve the core issues with the SIR. The Court rightly observed that “the entire exercise of SIR is about identity only”, that none of the 11 documents currently listed are “telltale ones for citizenship”, and that they are all meant to prove identity. It also rightly went on to question why Aadhaar, which is “considered basic for getting other documents”, is excluded while dependent documents such as caste certificates are accepted, exposing the inconsistency in the ECI’s position. The ECI’s objection to Aadhaar as merely proving residence rather than citizenship reveals a misunderstanding of the practical realities of Bihar, besides legal precedents. For example, data show that while 87% of Bihar’s population have an Aadhaar card, only 45%-50% are matriculates and close to just 2% have passports.

The Court’s earlier judgments remain relevant too, having decisively rejected putting the “onus of proof of citizenship” on voters already enrolled in previous elections. This precedent contradicts the SIR’s approach of treating every voter as a potential non-citizen unless proven otherwise and which risks significant disenfranchisement of electors despite their having valid identification. While not staying the SIR, the Court also listed the judicial review of the whole process, including its timing and nature, which “goes to the very roots of our democracy [and] is about the right to vote”. The Court has reminded the ECI that its mandate, under Article 324, is to facilitate democratic participation, and not to create obstacles. There has been enough confusion on the ground following a more liberal reading of the ECI’s SIR rules on document submission and verification by the Chief Electoral Officer, which was overruled by the Chief Election Commissioner. With its suggestion on expanding the list of verifiable documents, the Court has provided the ECI an opportunity to transform the SIR from a dangerously exclusionary exercise — one that could affect marginalised citizens — into a genuinely inclusive process.