ECI terms allegations of Muslim voter exclusion in Bihar as 'communal', defends revision process
New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday submitted before the Supreme Court that allegations of disproportionate exclusion of Muslim voters from the electoral rolls in Bihar were “communal” and unfounded. The Commission defended the accuracy of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and maintained that the revision process adhered to all legal and procedural standards.
In its affidavit filed before a bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, the ECI refuted claims made by petitioners, including the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and political activist Yogendra Yadav, who alleged that Muslims were disproportionately removed from the electoral rolls during the revision process.
According to the petitioners, 25% of the 65 lakh voters excluded from the draft roll and 34% of the 3.66 lakh voters ultimately deleted were identified as Muslims, based on name-recognition software. The ECI, however, contested both the methodology and the intent behind such claims.
“The Petitioners have sought to allege disproportionate exclusion of Muslims… This is based on some software for name recognition, whose authenticity, accuracy or appropriateness cannot be commented upon,” the ECI stated in its affidavit. “This communal approach is to be deprecated. Electoral Rolls database does not capture any information on the religion of any elector.”
The ECI also highlighted the limited engagement from political parties and civil society actors during the SIR process, despite opportunities for public participation and correction.
“Finalisation of the electoral roll involves an interplay of all stakeholders. While it is the duty of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) to finalise the roll, political parties and electors are equally responsible for ensuring accuracy and inclusiveness,” the affidavit noted.
The Commission pointed out that over 90,000 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were deployed, and multiple house-to-house (H2H) verification visits were carried out. It added that all directions from the Supreme Court were followed, and data related to inclusions and deletions were uploaded online.
Despite this, the Commission noted that the number of objections and correction applications received was minimal, suggesting that the revision exercise was comprehensive and accurate.
During the hearing, the petitioners requested the Court to direct the ECI to publish the names of those added or deleted from the final voters’ list. The Court took note of the Commission’s assurance that the names would be published and stated that it expected full compliance.
“We have no doubt that they will fulfil their responsibility… They are bound to publish. We are not closing the matter,” the bench observed.
Earlier, the Court had noted discrepancies between Bihar’s adult population and the number of registered voters, citing a 107% mismatch, which led to its approval of the SIR.
The matter remains under judicial consideration.
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Texas halts H-1B visas at state universities, agencies; to affect Indians
Houston (US) (PTI): Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies and public universities to immediately halt new H-1B visa petitions, tightening hiring rules at taxpayer-funded institutions, a step likely to impact Indian professionals.
The freeze will remain in effect through May 2027.
The directive issued on Tuesday said that the state agencies and public universities must stop filing new petitions unless they receive written approval from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The governor's order, in a red state that is home to thousands of H-1B visa holders, comes as the Trump administration has initiated steps to reshape the visa programme.
“In light of recent reports of abuse in the federal H-1B visa programme, and amid the federal government’s ongoing review of that programme to ensure American jobs are going to American workers, I am directing all state agencies to immediately freeze new H-1B visa petitions as outlined in this letter,” Abbot said.
Institutions must also report on H-1B usage, including numbers, job roles, countries of origin, and visa expiry dates, the letter said.
US President Donald Trump on September 19 last year signed a proclamation ‘Restriction on entry of certain non-immigrant workers’ that restricted the entry into the US of those workers whose H-1B petitions are not accompanied or supplemented by a payment of USD 1,00,000.
The H1-B visa fee of USD 1,00,000 would be applicable only to new applicants, i.e. all new H-1B visa petitions submitted after September 21, including those for the FY2026 lottery.
Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), with China in the second spot. The major fields include technology, engineering, medicine, and research.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is the second-highest beneficiary with 5,505 approved H-1B visas in 2025, after Amazon (10,044 workers on H-1B visas), according to the USCIS. Other top beneficiaries include Microsoft (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Deloitte (2,353), Infosys (2,004), Wipro (1,523) and Tech Mahindra Americas (951).
Texas public universities employ hundreds of foreign faculty and researchers, many from India, across engineering, healthcare, and technology fields.
Date from Open Doors -- a comprehensive information resource on international students and scholars studying or teaching at higher education institutions in the US -- for 2022-2023 showed 2,70,000 students from India embarked on graduate and undergraduate degrees in US universities, accounting for 25 per cent of the international student population in the US and 1.5 per cent of the total student population.
Indian students infuse roughly USD 10 billion annually into universities and related businesses across the country through tuition and other expenses – while also creating around 93,000 jobs, according to the Open Doors data.
Analysts warn the freeze could slow recruitment of highly skilled professionals, affecting academic research and innovation.
Supporters say the directive protects local jobs, while critics caution it could weaken Texas’ competitiveness in higher education and research.
The order comes amid broader debate in the US over skilled immigration and state-level interventions in federal programmes.
H-1B visas allow US companies to hire technically-skilled professionals that are not easily available in America. Initially granted for three years, these can be extended for another three years.
In September 2025, Trump had also signed an executive order ‘The Gold Card’, aimed at setting up a new visa pathway for those committed to supporting the United States; with individuals who can pay USD 1 million to the US Treasury, or USD 2 million if a corporation is sponsoring them, to get access to expedited visa treatment and a path to a Green Card.
