Too much passion, too little reason: SC flags false Bihar voter roll affidavit

New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (EC) has informed the Supreme Court that it has decided to "begin the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the entire country for the discharge of its constitutional mandate to protect the integrity of the electoral rolls". Referring to an order passed by it on June 24, the EC said that the SIR exercise started with Bihar.

As regards the schedule for conducting the SIR for the rest of the country, the EC said that the same will be "issued separately in due course".

Assist voters excluded from final list: SS to Bihar legal body

The apex court, meanwhile, on Thursday asked Bihar State Legal Service Authority (BSLSA) to issue directions to its district-level body for assisting voters excluded from the final electoral rolls in filing appeals with the EC.

A division bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said the BSLSA will release a list of para-legal volunteers for assisting the excluded voters by filing appeals and ensuring that they have detailed orders of their name's rejection. Speaking for the bench, Justice Kant verbally asked the petitioners: "Why are people (voters) not coming forward to file appeals (if their names have been wrongly excluded from the roll). Why can't these people (who are) approaching you not approaching the legal services authority?"

The bench also took a grim view of discrepancies in the affidavits submitted before the SC by certain individuals who claimed that they had been incorrectly excluded.

The counsel for EC submitted the contents of the affidavit submitted by one particular voter were false.

The counsel also claimed Prashant Bhushan's NGO has dropped the claim of mass voter deletion, now stating 130 names were removed."

The bench then enquired from Bhushan about the same (false affidavit). In response, Bhushan submitted it was given to him by a responsible individual. Justice Bagchi responded, saying "We are confident that had you known that the contents are wrong, you would have not produced it". He further remarked there is "too much passion. And little reason."