NEW DELHI: Election Commission on Saturday filed an affidavit in Supreme Court declaring that it alone has full discretion to conduct a special intensive revision (SIR) or general revision of electoral rolls before a general elections, assembly polls or bye-elections to a constituency.Opposing a PIL by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay requesting SC to direct EC to conduct periodic SIR of electoral rolls in all states, especially in those witnessing large-scale illegal migration of Bangladeshi nationals, EC said any direction from apex court would breach the commission’s statutorily conferred exclusive jurisdiction on this issue.Rule 25 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, read with Section 21 of the Representation of People Act, makes it the obligation of EC to conduct a revision of electoral roll, which is not “couched within a timeline, but is a general obligation which is to be met before each general or legislative assembly elections, or before each bye-election to fill a casual vacancy”.EC may at any time for reasons to be recorded, direct an SIR of the electoral roll for any constituency or part of a constituency in a manner as it may deem fit, it said, adding that it has “complete discretion over the policy of revision to the exclusion of any other authority”.Responding to the PIL, EC said it has already directed initiation of pre-revision activities for the SIR of electoral rolls in states and told SC that “any direction to conduct SIR at regular intervals throughout the country would encroach upon the exclusive jurisdiction of EC.” Answering the challenge to EC’s power to conduct SIR in Bihar by Association of Democratic Reforms along with political parties and politicians from Congress and other opposition parties, EC said, it is fully “cognisant of its statutory responsibility to maintain the purity and integrity of the electoral rolls and, in exercise of its powers under the RP Act has decided to conduct SIR in different states as envisaged under para 10 of the SIR Order dated June 24, the schedule for which is to be issued separately in due course.”It said, “In this regard, the commission, vide its letter dated July 5 addressed to all Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of states and Union territories (except Bihar), has directed initiation of immediate pre-revision activities for the SIR of electoral rolls with reference to Jan 01, 2026.”
