The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Election Commission of India (ECI) to respond to a petition questioning why only a Special Revision (SR) of the electoral rolls is being conducted in Assam, instead of a more stringent Special Intensive Revision (SIR), ahead of the 2026 Assembly polls.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, sitting with Justice Joymalya Bagchi, issued notice and posted the matter for December 16 after hearing senior advocate Vijay Hansaria for the petitioner.
Hansaria argued that Assam had been “singled out” for a less rigorous verification exercise despite decades of acknowledged concerns over illegal immigration. He submitted that while states including Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and several Union territories are undergoing SIR, electors in Assam are only filling enumeration forms without being required to produce any supporting documents.
“Nothing is required in Assam. No document required. I don’t understand why Assam is singled out,” Hansaria told the court, pointing to Supreme Court rulings that have highlighted infiltration concerns and the court’s recent decision in matters relating to the Citizenship Act.
He added that the ECI had earlier informed the court that a nationwide SIR would be undertaken, including Assam, and requested a stay of the ongoing SR process.
The Chief Justice remarked that the Commission may have adopted a different approach because of “special laws in Assam” and the presence of Foreigners’ Tribunals, but noted that the bench would first hear the ECI before considering any interim relief. It declined to grant a stay at this stage.
The petition, filed by former Gauhati High Court Bar Association president Mrinal Kumar Choudhury through advocate Ansauya Choudhary, contends that an SR does not mandate electors to provide proof of citizenship, age, or residence, whereas SIR requires supporting documents to be submitted along with printed enumeration forms. It argues that Assam’s demographic history calls for “stricter, not relaxed” scrutiny.
The plea refers to official and public assessments, including the 1997 report of then Assam Governor Lt Gen S K Sinha and statements by former Union home minister Indrajit Gupta estimating 40–50 lakh illegal migrants in the state, as well as past observations of the Supreme Court on cross-border migration.
It asserts that there is “no difference on the ground realities” between Assam and other states where SIR has been initiated and points to the ECI’s order for Bihar on June 24 and an affidavit in the Association for Democratic Reforms case that indicated a pan-India SIR exercise.
Last month, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma supported the poll body’s decision to conduct SR with January 1, 2026 as the qualifying date, stating the exercise would lead to “clean, updated and accurate electoral rolls” and assuring full cooperation to the ECI.
As per the Commission’s clarifications, the choice of SR followed detailed consultations and took into account the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the category of “D-Voters,” whose citizenship is under adjudication. D-Voters will remain on the draft rolls and their status will change only after orders from a Foreigners’ Tribunal or court.
The ECI has also distinguished the processes, noting that SIR requires submission of documentary evidence through printed enumeration forms, while SR and Special Summary Revision use pre-filled registers and standard Forms 6, 7 and 8 without mandatory document attachment.
