Supreme Court Demands Clarity on Bihar Voter List Exclusions

The Supreme Court has mandated that the Election Commission of India publish the list of approximately 65 lakh excluded voters from Bihar's draft electoral list on district websites and through various media. This directive aims to enhance transparency and allow affected voters to contest their exclusion.

In a significant move to ensure transparency, the Supreme Court on Thursday instructed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to publicly release a list of around 65 lakh individuals excluded from Bihar's draft electoral roll. This list should be available on the district electoral officer's website, detailing the specific reasons for exclusion, such as death, migration, or duplication.

The directive, issued by Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, also calls for the dissemination of this information through local newspapers, Doordarshan, and radio, alongside social media platforms. Additionally, a booth-wise list must be on display at all Panchayat Bhawans and Block Development and Panchayat offices for manual access. The Chief Electoral Officer of Bihar's website will also host the list, with documents searchable by EPIC numbers.

The Supreme Court further mandated that the Election Commission gather compliance reports from district- and booth-level officers and submit them by Tuesday. Affected individuals were advised to file objections with their Aadhaar card if their names were omitted. The court set August 22 to hear petitions challenging the ECI's citizenship proof directive, spearheaded by multiple petitioners including RJD MP Manoj Jha and PUCL. Concerns are raised about the potential impact on marginalized voters due to the exclusion of common identification documents.

(With inputs from agencies.)