The Supreme Court has issued a directive that the Election Commission of India (ECI) must accept the Aadhaar card as one of the approved forms of identification for the Bihar Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The court has stated that the Aadhaar card will be considered the 12th document for voter identification. The court has further stated that while Aadhaar cards can be used for identification, authorities retain the right to verify their legitimacy. The Supreme Court emphasized that the Aadhaar card is not proof of citizenship.
Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi presided over the hearing and observed that, according to the Aadhaar Act, the card does not establish citizenship. However, under the Representation of the People’s Act, the Aadhaar card is accepted as a means of identification. The court has requested the ECI to instruct its officials accordingly. This ruling follows pleas from RJD and others, who claimed that the ECI was not accepting the Aadhaar card as a standalone document for electoral roll inclusion. Furthermore, the Supreme Court previously stated that individuals excluded from the draft electoral roll in Bihar’s SIR process could submit Aadhaar cards, along with the necessary forms, to challenge their exclusion. The court had clarified that objections could be submitted using the 11 documents listed by the ECI, or with an Aadhaar card.