MP Mahua Moitra Moves Supreme Court Against Electoral Roll Revision in Bihar, Cites Risk of Disenfranchisement

New Delhi, July 6 — Trinamool Congress Member of Parliament Mahua Moitra has filed a petition in the Supreme Court of India challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decision to carry out a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in Bihar. The petition raises concerns over potential large-scale disenfranchisement and urges the court to quash the order dated June 24, 2025.

Filed under Article 32 of the Constitution of India through advocate Neha Rathi, the petition contends that the ECI’s move violates constitutional guarantees, including Articles 14, 19(1)(a), 21, 325, and 326. Moitra has also requested that the Supreme Court restrain the Commission from initiating similar revisions in other states, particularly West Bengal, where similar instructions have reportedly been issued for August 2025.

At the center of the dispute is the ECI's directive requiring all voters in Bihar to revalidate their eligibility by submitting documentary proof of citizenship. This includes birth certificates or passports and, depending on the voter's date of birth, additional documentation from one or both parents. The petition asserts that the directive is not only unprecedented but also legally untenable under the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.

According to the petition, voters born before July 1, 1987 must submit their own citizenship proof, while those born between July 1, 1987, and December 31, 2004, must furnish one parent’s citizenship document. For those born after January 1, 2005, both parents’ documents are required. The petition highlights that commonly held documents such as Aadhaar cards and ration cards are not accepted, potentially excluding many from rural and marginalized communities who lack birth or passport records.

The last date for submission of these documents is July 25, 2025. Voters failing to comply by the deadline may have their names removed from the draft rolls.

Moitra’s plea argues that the process imposes an unreasonable burden on voters and could strip many of their franchise rights arbitrarily. It further warns that the precedent set in Bihar may be extended to other states ahead of the 2026 state elections and the 2029 general elections.

The ECI, defending its decision, has cited urban migration, an increase in new voters, non-reporting of deaths, and the presence of foreign nationals in the rolls as the basis for the special revision. It has maintained that the process will be conducted in accordance with constitutional provisions and electoral law.

Several civil society groups, including the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), and activist Yogendra Yadav, have also approached the Supreme Court on similar grounds, expressing apprehensions over the implications of the SIR exercise.