EC Tells SC No Voter Deletion Without Notice

New Delhi: The Election Commission (EC) has informed the Supreme Court that no voter’s name will be deleted from the draft electoral roll in Bihar without issuing prior notice, providing an opportunity to be heard, and passing a reasoned order.

The poll panel also said the statutory framework does not require it to prepare or share a separate list of people not included in the draft rolls, nor to publish reasons for their non-inclusion.

The EC filed an additional affidavit in the apex court on Saturday, days after releasing the much-anticipated draft electoral rolls in Bihar, listing 7.24 crore voters but excluding over 65 lakh names. The commission claimed most of those excluded had either died or migrated.

The EC also responded to an application seeking directions to publish a full and final constituency-wise and booth-wise list of the approximately 65 lakh electors whose enumeration forms were not submitted, along with the reasons for non-submission.

A bench headed by Justice Surya Kant is hearing the pleas challenging the EC’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

In its affidavit, the EC said the first stage of the SIR had been completed and the draft rolls were published on August 1.

“It is further submitted that, as a matter of policy and in strict adherence to the principles of natural justice, no deletion of any elector’s name from the draft electoral roll, published on August 1, 2025, shall be undertaken without: (i) issuance of a prior notice to the concerned elector indicating the proposed deletion and the grounds thereof, (ii) affording a reasonable opportunity of being heard and furnishing relevant documents, and (iii) passing of a reasoned and speaking order by the competent authority,” the EC stated.

The commission said these safeguards are reinforced by a robust two-tier appeal mechanism under the relevant rules, ensuring that every elector has adequate recourse against any adverse action.

It further said strict directions were issued to prevent any deletion without notice and a speaking order, with provision for appeals under Section 24 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.

The EC maintained that it is taking every possible step to ensure no eligible elector is excluded from the rolls.

In a separate reply, it reiterated that the law does not require it to prepare or share any list of names of people excluded from the draft rolls or to provide reasons for their exclusion.

“As neither the law nor guidelines provide for preparation or sharing of such a list of previous electors whose enumeration form was not received for any reason during the enumeration phase, no such list can be sought by the petition as a matter of right,” the EC said.

It clarified that exclusion from the draft roll does not amount to deletion from the electoral roll, but rather indicates that the filled enumeration form was not received during the enumeration phase.

“However, given the human involvement in an exercise of this scale, there is always the possibility of an exclusion or inclusion arising from inadvertence or error,” it added.

The EC said that before publishing the draft rolls, it had directed the Chief Electoral Officer and others to share with political parties the booth-level list of individuals whose enumeration forms were not received, seeking their assistance in contacting them.

It alleged that the petitioner’s approach was consistent with earlier attempts to malign the EC by creating “false narratives” on digital, print, and social media, and urged the court to impose heavy costs for deliberately misleading it.

The commission also said that after publishing the draft rolls, political parties were supplied with an updated list of electors not included in the rolls, and acknowledged receiving it.

“In yet another attempt to mislead this court, the petitioners emphatically assert that a person whose name has been excluded from the draft roll has no recourse. This is incorrect,” the EC said, pointing to the detailed SIR guidelines issued on June 24, which allow for inclusion of individuals whose enumeration forms were not submitted within the specified time.

On August 6, the Supreme Court asked the EC to submit by August 9 the details of around 65 lakh electors left out of the draft rolls.

The NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, which has challenged the EC’s June 24 order for the SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar, has filed a fresh application seeking directions to publish the names of the around 65 lakh deleted voters, indicating whether they had died, permanently migrated, or were excluded for any other reason.