Supreme Court Directs ECI to Include Aadhaar Card in Bihar’s SIR Process Immediately

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has issued crucial directions regarding the ongoing SIR (Official Identity Registration) process by the Election Commission in Bihar. The court ruled that Aadhaar should be accepted as the twelfth valid document for voter registration. This order follows complaints that Election Commission officials were not accepting Aadhaar despite previous Supreme Court directives.

The bench, comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joy Mallya Bagchi, clarified that Aadhaar must be treated as a valid identity document. However, the authority to verify its authenticity rests with the concerned officials. The bench directed field officers to implement this immediately. It further emphasized that Aadhaar cannot serve as the sole or definitive basis for verifying citizenship or age.

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Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the RJD, argued that the ECI is deliberately excluding Aadhaar. He said, “Only 11 notified documents are being accepted, and registration officers are rejecting others. If a universal document like Aadhaar is rejected, what is the meaning of an ‘inclusive process’?”

The court noted discrepancies between the commission’s statements in court and instructions given on the ground. When asked why Aadhaar was excluded, ECI’s lawyer Rakesh Dwivedi replied that they would check for errors and that the commission had issued a notification accepting Aadhaar as per prior court orders.

The Supreme Court’s decision grants legal recognition to the inclusion of Aadhaar in voter registration, and authorities have been instructed to implement it immediately.