Supreme Court tells EC to publish names of 65 lakh removed voters in Bihar with reasons for deletion
PTC Web Desk: The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to publish the names of 65 lakh voters removed from Bihar’s electoral rolls, along with the reasons for their deletion, on official websites. The court also ordered that the list must be widely publicised so every voter can check it easily.
The order came while hearing petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists in poll-bound Bihar. Justice Surya Kant noted that, according to the ECI, 22 lakh of these voters were removed because they had passed away. “If 22 lakh people have died, why is it not disclosed at the booth level? Citizens’ rights should not depend on political parties,” he said.
The Bench, comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, instructed the ECI to take immediate steps as an interim measure. These include: displaying the names of the 65 lakh voters who appeared in the 2025 list but are missing from the draft list on district-level websites; mentioning the specific reason for each deletion in the list; giving wide publicity to the list through newspapers in local languages, Doordarshan, other TV channels, and official social media accounts of district election officers; displaying the booth-wise list at panchayat bhawans, block development offices, and panchayat offices so that citizens can check it manually.
The court also said the list should be searchable online using voters’ EPIC numbers, making it easy for individuals to confirm their names. Aggrieved voters can file claims along with a copy of their Aadhaar card to restore their names.
During the hearing, Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, representing the ECI, clarified that no names had been wrongly deleted and that any living voter whose name was removed due to being marked “deceased” could contact officials to correct it.
Justice Bagchi stressed the need for greater transparency, saying the entire dataset should be made available online. Justice Kant added that people should be able to independently check their details, without relying on political workers. The case will be heard again on August 22.
- With inputs from agencies
