The question of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter’s list in Bihar being carried out by the Election Commission of India (ECI) came up for hearing in the Supreme Court (SC) on July 10. The matter was brought to the attention of the apex court by a bunch of Opposition political parties. Their plea was that the timing of the SIR, and the documents that it stipulates to register voters—and those that it excludes—will lead to disenfranchisement of a great many voters in the state, given the short time left for the elections.

In my view, the SC handled the petition with admirable restraint and maturity. Given the constitutional mandate of the ECI, which gives it full autonomy to conduct elections in a free and fair manner, including such actions that are consequential to such a mandate, the SC did not interfere in the decision of the ECI. It did not order a stay of proceedings, or issue instructions that would be tantamount to interfering in the functioning of an autonomous institution.

However, it did raise three important questions, in terms of advice, query, or clarification. First, it offered a prima facie view that documents like Aadhar, voter ID card and ration cards could be considered by the ECI in identifying a genuine voter. This advice was both crucial and pertinent. The ECI has excluded all three, and substituted them with 11 other documents, including matriculation degree, passport........

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