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New Delhi: The Election Commission of India’s (EC) move to conduct a “special intensive revision (SIR)” of the electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar – requiring all existing voters, who were not on the rolls in 2003 to provide proof of their and their parents citizenship – has raised questions of practicality of the exercise just months ahead of the elections. It has also triggered concerns around mass disenfranchisement, exclusion and whether the poll body itself is being used to usher in the National Register for Citizens (NRC). 

On Tuesday (June 24) the EC issued instructions for holding SIR in Bihar, stating that the last such exercise was conducted in the state in 2003. The commission, in announcing the house-to-house verification exercise, said that it had been necessitated due to various reasons, among which was the inclusion of “foreign illegal immigrants” in the electoral roll.

“Various reasons such as rapid urbanisation, frequent migration, young citizens becoming eligible to vote, non-reporting of deaths and inclusion of the names of foreign illegal immigrants have necessitated the conduct of an intensive revision so as to ensure integrity and preparation of error-free electoral rolls,” the EC said in its statement on June 24. 

According to a 19-page letter to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Bihar with the subject – ‘Special Intensive Revision w.r.t. 01.07.2025 as the qualifying date’ – the form for electors shows that those born before July 1, 1987 will have to prove their date and/or place of birth. Those born between July 1, 1987-December 2, 2004 will have to prove their date of birth and the date/place of birth of one of their parents. Those born after December 2, 2004 will on the other hand have to prove their date/place of birth as well as that of both their parents.

Bihar has around 7.73 crore voters. Crucially, the exercise which has already started on Wednesday (June 25) – a day after it was announced – will be completed in two months.

Booth level officers (BLOs) will be carrying out the door-to-door checks till July 26. The draft electoral roll will be published on August 1. Voters will have until September 1 to make claims and objections and the final electoral roll is set to be published on September 30.

The commission’s move comes amid allegations by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that undocumented Bangladesh migrants have registered themselves as voters. The Congress too has levelled allegations of voter manipulation in Maharashtra assembly........

© The Wire