SC to hear Bihar SIR voter list case on November 4; tells EC to rectify errors, ensure accuracy

The Supreme Court on Thursday fixed November 4 as the date for hearing legal issues arising from the much controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, ahead of Assembly polls.

During the proceedings, the Election Commission informed the court that no appeal had been filed against the deletion of any voter’s name in the final electoral roll prepared under the SIR exercise.

The bench further observed that the EC, being the responsible constitutional authority, is expected to examine and address typographical errors and other mistakes in the Bihar voter list. The top court added that it anticipates the electoral body will take necessary remedial measures to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the electoral rolls ahead of upcoming elections.


In an earlier hearing, the court had directed the EC to submit detailed information about the 3.66 lakh voters excluded from the final electoral roll following the SIR exercise. The EC told the bench that most of the newly added names belong to first-time voters, and that no complaints or appeals have been filed so far by any of those whose names were removed.

According to figures released by the EC, the final electoral roll published on September 30 showed that the total number of electors in Bihar fell by nearly 47 lakh, from 7.89 crore to 7.42 crore, following the SIR exercise. However, the final figure also reflected an increase of 17.87 lakh voters from the draft list issued on August 1, which had seen deletions of 65 lakh names due to death, migration, or duplication.

In total, 21.53 lakh new electors were added, while 3.66 lakh names were removed after the draft roll, resulting in a net increase in the final list.