The Election Commission on Tuesday directed the Chief Electoral Officer (CEC) of Bihar to accept the Aadhaar card as an identity card. Now the Aadhaar card will be considered the 12th document for adding names to the voter list during the ongoing Special Revision Campaign (SIR) in Bihar.
This instruction was issued a day after the Supreme Court’s order. It clearly states that the Aadhaar card will be used only as a proof of identity and citizenship.
This means that now Aadhar card will also be a valid document for adding name in Bihar’s voter list. But to prove citizenship, the applicant will have to provide any one of the 11 documents mentioned earlier or an equivalent document.
The Election Commission has said that the Aadhaar card should be considered the 12th document, but a signed declaration in the SIR form must also be attached with it. The Commission cited Section 9 of the Aadhaar Act 2016, which clearly states that Aadhaar number or its confirmation alone does not give anyone the right to citizenship or residence, nor will it be considered proof of the same.
It is worth noting that Section 23(4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 already includes Aadhaar card as a document proving identity. Moreover, the form used under Special Revision (SIR) also has a column for Aadhaar card. This column is either pre-filled (for voters included in the 2003 voter list) or the applicant can fill it up at will.
In a letter sent to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Bihar, the Election Commission directed that this order related to Aadhaar should be strictly implemented. Also, it should be immediately sent to all the District Election Officers, Voter Registration Officers, Assistant EROs and other concerned officials.
The Election Commission (EC) has said that strict action will be taken for not following its orders.
On Monday, the Supreme Court directed that Aadhaar card be considered as the 12th document for adding name in the revised voter list of Bihar. It can be used as an identity card (ID proof).
However, the bench of judges Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi clarified that Aadhaar is not a proof of citizenship. The court said that the Election Commission will have the right to check its authenticity.
The court said in the order, “According to the law, Aadhaar card is not a proof of citizenship, so it cannot be used to prove citizenship. But under Section 23 (4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, it is included in the documents proving identity.”
The Supreme Court asked the EC to issue instructions in this regard by Tuesday.
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