The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Election Commission (EC) to accept Aadhaar as the 12th document for establishing voter identity in Bihar. This ruling pertains to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s voter list, which currently allows 11 types of identity documents.A bench comprising Justices Suryakant and Joymalya Bagchi clarified that Aadhaar serves as proof of identity, not citizenship.

The bench instructed the EC to verify the authenticity of submitted Aadhaar numbers, ensure the exclusion of those using fake documents, and confirm that only genuine citizens are included in the voter list.The court further directed the EC to issue immediate guidelines for accepting Aadhaar and sought clarification on show-cause notices issued to officials who refused Aadhaar as proof of identity.