Bihar Voter Roll Revision: From Citizenship Concerns To Inclusive Updates, Why EC Altered Course

The Election Commission’s (EC) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, launched in June 2025, has undergone a major transformation following widespread criticism, Supreme Court scrutiny, and feedback from the ground. What started as an exercise viewed by many as a backdoor attempt at a citizenship check ended up becoming a more inclusive process to ensure that genuine voters were not left out.

When the EC first announced the SIR, it introduced an unprecedented requirement: anyone not listed in Bihar’s 2003 electoral rolls—estimated at nearly 2.93 crore people—had to submit at least one of 11 documents to prove their eligibility to vote. These included birth certificates, government job or pension papers, caste certificates, property records, and more. Surprisingly, widely used documents such as Aadhaar, ration cards, and even the Commission’s own Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) were not accepted initially. This sparked alarm, as it resembled a process of proving citizenship, particularly in a state with complex migration and demographic patterns.

Civil society groups, opposition parties, and affected citizens challenged the move in the Supreme Court. While the EC defended its decision by pointing out flaws in ration cards and reiterating that Aadhaar is not proof of citizenship, the Court directed a course correction. Eventually, Aadhaar was allowed as a 12th valid document.

Meanwhile, on-the-ground reports revealed the difficulties faced by voters, especially in rural and marginalized communities, who struggled to produce the required paperwork. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and local officials found the process confusing and feared mass exclusions. Responding to these concerns, the EC changed tack. It instructed officials to actively seek ways to establish voters’ eligibility instead of forcing them to furnish documents.

A key adjustment was linking individuals back to the 2003 rolls. If voters themselves were not present in the list, officials tried to connect them as children, relatives, or dependents of someone who was. Roughly 77% of Bihar’s electorate was eventually tied to the 2003 rolls—52% directly, and another 25% indirectly through family links. For the remaining citizens, the EC relied on state databases such as family registers (known locally as vanshavali), the Mahadalit Vikas Register, and the caste survey records.

By the end of the exercise, what began as a restrictive and contested revision transformed into a more inclusion-oriented process. The final voter roll recorded 68.6 lakh deletions—mostly due to death, migration, or duplicate entries—and 21.5 lakh fresh additions, bringing Bihar’s total electorate to 7.42 crore.

The episode highlights how a top-down administrative order, initially perceived as exclusionary, was reshaped by judicial intervention and grassroots realities. It also underscores the delicate balance between maintaining the integrity of voter rolls and safeguarding citizens’ democratic right to vote.