In its reply, the poll panel had argued that it excluded Aadhaar and Ration cards from the list of verification documents as they can be acquired through fraudulent means.

The NGO Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR), which has challenged the Election Commission of India’s Special Intensive Revision exercise in poll-Bihar, has told the Supreme Court that the poll panel has not provided any valid reason for excluding Aadhaar and Ration cards for the voter list verification.

The NGO has made the submission in a rejoinder to the reply filed by the Election Commission of India, defending the SIR exercise.

In its reply, the poll panel had argued that it excluded Aadhaar and Ration cards from the list of verification documents as they can be acquired through fraudulent means.

Countering the poll panel’s argument, the ADR said that the 11 documents included in the list for the verification of the voter list can also be obtained on the basis of fake and false documentation.

“The fact that Aadhar card is one of the documents accepted for obtaining Permanent Residence Certificate, OBC/SC/ST Certificate and for passport – makes ECI’s rejection of Aadhar (which is most widely held document) under the instant SIR order patently absurd,” the ADR stated in its rejoinder, according to legal website Bar and Bench.

It further added, “This lack of defined procedure enables EROs to act arbitrarily and to exercise their discretion in a manner that is susceptible to misuse and undermines the integrity of the electoral process and democracy, which is a fundamental right.”

Countering the ECI’s assertion that the SIR exercise in Bihar was necessary due to the migration of voters, the ADR argued that the three-month deadline has put many eligible voters at risk of disenfranchisement.

“With elections stated to be held in October-November 2025, there is no time for a large number of voters — both who do not have documents but have submitted form and whose names do not find a mention in draft roll to get themselves included in the rolls. Moreover, the impact of deletion of migrated electors can be substantial if they are clustered within a few constituencies and demographics,” it added.