Congress Says Opposition Stands United on Bihar Voter Roll Issue, Trusts Supreme Court

Joining nine other parties in challenging the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar before the Supreme Court, the Congress on Monday said the entire opposition is united on the issue and alleged that the exercise is aimed at disenfranchising the vast number of voters with its "mischievous methodology".

The opposition party said it has full faith that the apex court will deliver justice, as it claimed that the revision exercise initiated by the Election Commission just ahead of assembly elections in Bihar is causing chaos across villages and towns in the state by creating anxiety among crores of voters who fear their right to vote will be stolen, said Congress general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal as a signatory on behalf of the Indian National Congress, along with various opposition parties, he has approached the Supreme Court against the "blatantly unconstitutional SIR exercise" in Bihar.

"It has wreaked havoc across villages and towns of Bihar, giving crores of voters anxiety about whether their right to vote will be stolen. This is mass-scale rigging and mischief being carried out by the ECI, under instructions from the ruling regime," Venugopal alleged in a post on X.

"We have faith that the Hon’ble Supreme Court will deliver justice," he said.

The party's in charge of the media and publicity department, Pawan Khera, said the Congress, said, "Today, the Indian National Congress, along with nine political parties, came together to file a challenge to the flawed and destructive Special Intensive Revision (SIR) being carried out by the ECI."

"The entire opposition stands together to oppose an exercise that is guaranteed to disenfranchise a vast number of voters due to its malicious and mischievous methodology. The Supreme Court has listed the matter for Thursday, July 10, 2025. Satyamev Jayate," Khera said in his post on X.

In a post in Hindi on X, Congress general secretary Randeep Surjewala said, "Democracy or BJP’s vote suppression mechanism? Bihar is asking, the country is asking!".

He said Bihar’s voter list was finalised in January 2025, and the Election Commission itself acknowledged this. Revisions were made until June, and then, suddenly, it was discarded, he noted.

"Without any proof, without any discrepancies, 7 crore voters now have to prove their Indian citizenship again. Those whose names were added after 2003 are being viewed with suspicion.

"Citizens who have been voting for the past 20 years are now being asked for identification, residence, and citizenship documents.

"This process called 'Special Intensive Revision' has neither any legal basis nor any mention in the rules. This term doesn’t even exist in electoral law," Surjewala said.

He claimed that when such a revision happened in 2003, it lasted a year, and everyone was treated equally, but now"it is just 30 days with different rules and no clear process".

"The people of Bihar are being tested on the question of citizenship. Voters have been turned into suspected citizens. The Election Commission is evading answers.

"This isn’t democracy; this is Shakuni’s laboratory. This isn’t a voter list; this is a script written with political motives. Remember, everything will be remembered.

"Remember, democracy won’t be lost to Shakuni’s dice," the Congress leader said in his post, referring to the prominent character of epic Mahabharat known for his machinations.

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on July 10 a batch of petitions challenging the decision of the Election Commission to undertake the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar.

A partial working day (PWD) bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi took note of the submissions of a battery of senior lawyers led by Kapil Sibal on behalf of several petitioners and agreed to hear the pleas on Thursday.

Sibal, who appeared for RJD MP Manoj Jha, urged the bench to issue notices to the poll panel on the petitions, saying it is an impossible task to be done within the timeline (as elections are likely to be held in November).

Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for another petitioner, submitted that there are around eight crore voters in the state, of which around four crore voters will have to submit their documents under the exercise.

According to the EC, the exercise was necessitated by rapid urbanisation, frequent migration, young citizens becoming eligible to vote, non-reporting of deaths, and inclusion of the names of foreign illegal immigrants.

The EC has said it will scrupulously adhere to the constitutional and legal provisions as laid down in Article 326 of the Constitution and Section 16 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, in carrying out the revision.