The stage is set for the Bihar Assembly Elections, and the Election Commission has already made it clear that no additions to the voter list will be made after the nomination date. The poll body has already released its final voter roll for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The Bihar SIR, launched on June 24, required all 7.89 crore registered voters to submit enumeration forms by July 25 to retain their enrollment. After the revision process, the final electoral roll released on September 30 listed 7.42 crore voters, reflecting the deletion of 68.5 lakh names and the addition of 21.53 lakh new ones.
With the Election Commission of India announcing the Bihar poll dates on Monday, the formal poll process has kicked-in, and now, there is a little hope for the opposition parties to expect something big from the Supreme Court on the SIR issue. The apex court is set to hear the legality of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls today. Notably, since Article 329 of the Constitution prevents judicial intervention once the election process begins, the SC is expected to tread cautiously. According to Section 80 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, a candidate or voter has the right to file an election petition in the appropriate High Court within 45 days after the results are announced.
Previous Notable Verdicts
Since 1952, the Supreme Court has interpreted the term “election” in Article 329(b) as encompassing the entire electoral process—from the issuance of the notification to the final declaration of results. In the 1952 case of N.P. Ponnuswami vs Returning Officer, the Court upheld that challenges to actions like rejection of nomination papers cannot be entertained by High Courts during the election process, as such matters fall within the scope of the complete election procedure, reported the Indian Express.
While the Supreme Court is open to examining the SIR issue if any illegality is found, the same may get delayed until the election is completed.
Judicial interference in the middle of an election process is exceptionally uncommon. The Supreme Court has reaffirmed this stance in several decisions, including a 2023 ruling concerning the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council elections. In that case, Justices Vikram Nath and Ahsanuddin Amanullah emphasized that courts should intervene only when administrative actions unfairly disrupt the balance between candidates or political parties.
Bihar Poll Dates
The Bihar assembly elections for the 243 assembly seats will be held in two phases – the first phase on November 6 and the second phase on November 11. The counting of votes will take place on November 14.
