The BRICS TimesThe Election Commission’s decision regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar has been challenged in the Supreme Court. The matter is scheduled for hearing on September 8. Earlier, the apex court had refused to extend the deadline for claims and objections.
The Supreme Court of India will on Monday hear petitions filed against the Election Commission’s decision to conduct the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in Bihar. The case will come before a bench headed by Justice Suryakant and Justice Jyotirmay Bhattacharya. The SIR process in Bihar, aimed at revising the voter list, was launched on June 24, with the final publication of the updated electoral roll scheduled for September 30.
The move has been challenged by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), along with political leaders Manoj Jha, Mahua Moitra, and Yogendra Yadav. The Supreme Court has already held several hearings on this issue. During an earlier hearing, the court declined to extend the deadline for filing claims and objections. However, following that, the Election Commission informed the court that claims would continue to be accepted even after September 1.
On August 22, the Supreme Court directed political parties to assist voters through booth-level agents during the revision process. It then scheduled the next hearing for September 8. The SIR exercise is being conducted in Bihar for the first time since 2003. The primary objective is to ensure a cleaner and more accurate voter list by removing names of the deceased, those who have relocated, and other ineligible individuals, while also including newly eligible voters.
The apex court has never declared the SIR process to be illegal. However, it has repeatedly raised concerns about its timing and implementation. During the August 14 hearing, the Supreme Court instructed that the list of 6.5 million missing names should be made available publicly on the official website. It also recommended that documents such as Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards be accepted to support voter claims.
Following the voter revision exercise, Bihar now has a total of 72.4 million registered voters. About 6.5 million names have been removed from the rolls, most of them belonging to individuals who had passed away, migrated, or were listed as overseas voters. Before the SIR began on June 24, 2025, the state had 78.9 million voters registered.
