The Supreme Court on Wednesday has upheld the legality of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), clarifying that deleting names from electoral rolls during the process has absolutely no bearing on an individual's citizenship. The ruling delivers a significant blow to the opposition and various petitioners, who had fiercely argued that the Election Commission’s ongoing exercise was merely a backdoor attempt at citizenship verification.
Addressing the broader, more contentious question of whether the Election Commission of India (ECI) has the authority to determine citizenship, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi attached a crucial caveat. The judges noted that whilst the commission can look into citizenship status, it can only do so from the very narrow perspective of deciding whether a person qualifies to be included in or excluded from the voter list.
The apex court emphasised that the commission has the power to delete names, but made it clear that doing so does not mean the person ceases to be an Indian citizen. The bench concluded that the entire administrative exercise is completely separate from any formal determination of citizenship.
Also read: Voters deleted during WB SIR higher than winning margin:TMC to SC
Follow us
