Immediately publish the names of the 65 lakh excluded voters

ECI’s Refusal to Disclose Excluded Voters’ List is a Weak Defense Against Accountability

Elyas Muhammad Thumbe, National General Secretary of the Social Democratic Party of India unequivocally condemns the Election Commission of India’s refusal to disclose the list of 65 lakh voters excluded from Bihar’s draft electoral rolls following the first phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), as revealed in their Supreme Court affidavit on August 9, 2025. This brazen opacity is a direct assault on democratic principles and the fundamental right to vote enshrined under Article 326 of the Constitution. The ECI’s claim that it is not statutorily required to publish names or reasons for exclusions is a flimsy excuse to evade accountability, raising serious suspicions of deliberate voter suppression targeting marginalized communities.

The SDPI has consistently opposed the SIR’s arbitrary and exclusionary framework, as voiced in our earlier statements on June 30 and July 9, 2025. The requirement for 2.93 crore voters to produce stringent documentation—excluding widely held Aadhaar and voter IDs—disproportionately burdens Dalits, Muslims, migrants, and women, many of whom lack access to such records. National Family Health Survey data confirms only 2.8% of Bihar’s population possesses birth certificates, rendering the process a deliberate barrier to enfranchisement. The ECI’s failure to release the excluded voters’ list, despite Supreme Court oversight, mocks transparency and fuels allegations of a backdoor National Register of Citizens (NRC), echoing the concerns of opposition leaders and civil society.

We demand the ECI immediately publish the names of the 65 lakh excluded voters and provide detailed reasons for their removal, as mandated by principles of natural justice and upheld in precedents like Lal Babu Hussein v. Electoral Registration Officer (1995). The rushed timeline, coinciding with Bihar’s monsoon and high migration, further exposes the ECI’s intent to disenfranchise vulnerable groups ahead of the November 2025 assembly elections. The affidavit’s dismissal of these concerns and its attack on petitioners like the Association for Democratic Reforms as “malafide” only deepens distrust in the ECI’s impartiality.

The SDPI calls for an immediate stay on the SIR, inclusion of Aadhaar and ration cards as valid proofs, and an extended timeline to ensure no eligible voter is excluded. We urge the Supreme Court to hold the ECI accountable and protect the democratic rights of Bihar’s citizens. The SDPI stands with the people of Bihar and will continue mobilizing against this undemocratic exercise to safeguard the sanctity of universal adult suffrage.