Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the recent order of the Election Commission of India (ECI) for Special Deep Revision (SIR) of voter list in Bihar. She has urged the Court to quash the ECI's order dated 24.06.2025, stating that the revision violates fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19(1)(a), 21, 325 and 326 of the Indian Constitution, as well as the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Registration of Voters Rules, 1960.
The plea, filed through advocate Neha Rathi, also sought an injunction to restrain the ECI from issuing similar orders for voter list revision in other states.
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"The said order arbitrarily excludes commonly accepted identity documents such as Aadhaar and ration card from the list of documents to be accepted, thereby imposing a heavy burden on voters who are at great risk of being disenfranchised," the plea said.
According to Moitra, this is the first time such an exercise is being carried out in the country where voters, whose names are already in the electoral roll and who have voted multiple times, are being asked to prove their eligibility again. The order seeks submission of citizenship documents, including proof of parental citizenship, for retaining or including names in the electoral roll. If these documents are not provided, the voter is at risk of being excluded from the electoral roll.
“Paragraph 13 of the impugned order clearly states that non-submission of fresh enumeration forms by 25.07.2025 will result in exclusion from the draft roll, without adequate procedural safeguards.”
The petition warns that the SIR order introduces extraneous qualifications not provided under the Constitution or the Representation of the People Act. It also claims that the move disproportionately affects poor and marginalised communities, particularly in rural Bihar, and resembles the structure and consequences of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
According to the petitioner, the unreasonable deadline of July 25, 2025 makes it practically impossible for many voters to collect and submit the required documents in time.
Further, Moitra told the court that the same process can be carried forward in West Bengal from August 2025, and directions have already been issued to the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) in the state.
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They argue that the requirement to prove voter eligibility again despite having voted in previous state and general elections is "absurd" and undermines the basic foundation of electoral democracy.
