The confusion on the ground that has marked the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar brings to mind the mammoth task involved in preparing the electoral rolls for the 1952 election.

With a population of approximately 34.8 crore and given the widespread illiteracy, diverse geographical terrain, and the aftermath of the Partition, creating accurate electoral rolls was a tough administrative task.

In July 1947 itself, the Constituent Assembly had decided to grant voting rights to every citizen aged 21 or older, a bold commitment to universal adult suffrage for a young nation. By March 1948, the Assembly Secretariat issued detailed directions to states for preparing draft electoral rolls. These directions specified eligibility criteria: voters had to be Indian citizens, at least 21 years old as of January 1, 1949, and residents of a village or electoral unit for at least 180 days in the year ending March 31, 1948.

Since delimitation was yet to be initiated, the rolls were organised village-wise to facilitate later segregation into constituencies once boundaries were defined. Enumerators conducted house-to-house inquiries, using house numbers listed in the 1941 Census and assigned supplementary numbers to new premises.

The details sought for the proposed rolls included: the voter’s name, parent or spouse’s name, address, sex, age,........

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