PakkaHyderabadi 
Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti and West Bengal CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal clarified that Aadhaar will serve only as an identity document in the ongoing voter list revision.
Aadhaar to be treated only as identity proof, not address or citizenship document: Election Commission
Kolkata, October 10 — The Election Commission of India (ECI) has clarified that the Aadhaar card will be treated only as an identity document during the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, and not as proof of address or citizenship.
The clarification came during a meeting held on Thursday between Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti and district-level electoral officers from East Midnapore, Bankura, and Jhargram, as part of the Central team’s two-day review visit to the state.
Clarification to booth-level officers on Aadhaar usage
During the interaction, several booth-level officers (BLOs) raised doubts regarding the treatment of Aadhaar in light of the Supreme Court’s order directing the ECI to include it as the 12th valid document for identity verification.
An insider from the State Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office said,
“To queries from BLOs, the Deputy Election Commissioner clarified that Aadhaar would be treated just as an identity document and not to be treated as address or citizenship proof. Hence, the ECI will not give any special importance to Aadhaar.”
West Bengal CEO reiterates ECI’s stand
Addressing the media later, West Bengal CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal elaborated on the Commission’s position.
“The existing voters whose names were already in the 2022 list will continue to remain valid. Those not listed will have to submit any one of the documents approved by the ECI as citizenship proof. Furnishing only an Aadhaar card will not be sufficient,” he said.
Agarwal further assured that no valid voter’s name will be deleted from the rolls during the revision process.
“The BLOs had doubts on a number of issues which were clarified in today’s meeting. The rules regarding Aadhaar card treatment must be followed strictly. Those having one more ECI-mandated document along with Aadhaar will not face any difficulty,” he added.
Background: Supreme Court order on Aadhaar inclusion
The clarification comes after the Supreme Court directed the Election Commission to include Aadhaar as the 12th valid document for establishing voter identity. However, the court maintained that Aadhaar cannot serve as citizenship proof.
The special intensive revision (SIR) aims to update the electoral roll by verifying eligible voters, removing duplicates, and ensuring transparency ahead of the upcoming elections.
