Patna: RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav hailed the Supreme Court’s interim directions on Bihar’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls as a victory for the opposition, framing the order as a step toward transparency and voter protection while announcing that his statewide yatra from August 17 will “tell the whole story” behind the alleged irregularities.
Yadav’s remarks came after the Court directed the Election Commission to publish district-wise lists of the approximately 65 lakh names proposed to be deleted from Bihar’s draft rolls, along with reasons for each deletion, and to widely publicize this information across newspapers, television, radio, social media, and official websites to enable affected voters to seek correction. The bench also allowed individuals to submit Aadhaar as an acceptable document when contesting deletions, a point the opposition has pressed as crucial for migrant workers and economically vulnerable voters who face documentation barriers.
Calling the directions a “big relief” for those who feared wrongful disenfranchisement, Yadav said the opposition will intensify outreach on the ground, converting legal gains into practical assistance for voters to restore names and correct entries. He reiterated allegations that the SIR drive had seen wrongful deletions, duplicate entries, and classification errors—such as marking living voters as “deceased”—and said his August 17 yatra will spotlight specific cases, procedural lapses, and booth-level experiences.
The Supreme Court’s emphasis on transparency and due process—requiring reasons to be searchable and accessible, and signaling that any one acceptable document suffices for verification—has reshaped the political narrative around the SIR, which had drawn intense scrutiny from civil society groups and opposition parties. While the Election Commission maintains that the exercise is inclusionary and aimed at accuracy ahead of the assembly polls, the Court’s directions are expected to trigger a wave of claims and objections from voters seeking corrections before finalization of the rolls.
