The Supreme Court today declined to stay the publication of Bihar’s draft electoral rolls, slated for August 1, under the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. However, it pressed the Commission to prioritise “mass inclusion” over exclusion, directing that widely held documents such as Aadhaar and Voter ID (EPIC) be accepted as valid identity proof during verification.

Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi articulated that while forgery is possible with any official document, Aadhaar and EPIC carry a presumption of legitimacy and should be permitted on a case‑by‑case basis. Their remark: “Any document on earth can be forged... include these two” aimed to ensure the verification process does not disenfranchise legitimate voters.

Petitioners—including the Association for Democratic Reforms and opposition parties—have argued that the SIR process risks excluding over 4 crore voters who lack the preferred documents and face bureaucratic hurdles. The Court, while allowing the draft roll to proceed, assured that it retains the power to quash any part of the exercise if procedural irregularities are proven.

The Court will conduct a detailed hearing beginning July 29 to adjudicate the legality and fairness of the ongoing revision exercise.