Bihar Electoral Roll Revision Finds Over 6 Million Anomalies
The first phase of the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar's electoral roll has uncovered significant discrepancies. Ahead of the state's assembly polls, officials reported that approximately 3.5 million registered electors could not be traced or have permanently migrated. Additionally, around 2.2 million deceased electors and 700,000 duplicate entries were identified. The findings, covering 99.8% of the state's 7.9 crore voters, will be used to create a draft roll for public verification, raising questions about voter data accuracy.
Unpacked:
The SIR aims to thoroughly update and verify Bihar’s electoral rolls before the assembly elections, removing deceased, migrated, or duplicate voters to ensure that only eligible residents are listed as electors. This is intended to improve the accuracy and legitimacy of the state’s voter rolls and prevent electoral fraud.
Opposition parties, like the RJD and Congress, argue the revision could lead to mass disenfranchisement, especially of the poor or minorities, and allege possible political motives behind the large-scale deletion of names. They demand safeguards to ensure no eligible voter is unjustly removed.
Nearly 100,000 Booth Level Officers and party agents conducted door-to-door verification across Bihar’s 38 districts. They cross-checked voter records, confirmed addresses, and identified deceased, migrated, or duplicate entries, digitizing 7.23 crore enumeration forms for analysis.
Citizens and political parties can review the draft electoral roll, which will be published on August 1, and submit objections or corrections until September 1, 2025. This public verification phase is designed to catch and fix any mistakes before the final roll is approved.