Bihar electoral roll update stirs row ahead of polls: All you need to know

While the EC insists that the Special Intensive Revision of the voter list is aimed at ensuring electoral integrity, critics argue that it risks disenfranchisement among Bihar's marginalised groups

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As Bihar prepares for assembly elections later this year, a large-scale revision of the state’s electoral rolls has stirred up controversy. The Election Commission of India (ECI) is conducting a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list, a process it says is essential to ensure "electoral integrity". But the move has spurred fears that it could disenfranchise millions, especially among the state’s marginalised communities.

 

What’s happening in Bihar?

The ECI initiated the revision on June 24, marking the first such exercise in Bihar since 2003. The process involves door-to-door verification and documentation for voters added to the rolls after that year, around 29.3 million of Bihar’s total 78.9 million registered voters.

 

As per the guidelines:

• Voters born before 1987 must prove their date or place of birth.
• Those born between 1987 and 2004 must submit their birth proof and one parent’s citizenship documentation.
• Voters born after 2004 must provide documents for themselves and both parents, including a passport if applicable.
• Voters listed in the 2003 rolls are exempt from furnishing documents but are still required to submit an enumeration form.

 

What the Election Commission has said

The EC has justified the exercise by citing urbanisation, migration, and concerns over names of foreign nationals appearing on voter rolls. It says the revision, guided by Article 326 of the Constitution and Section 16 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, is necessary to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the electoral process.

 

Close to 100,000 Booth Level Officers (BLOs), supported by 154,977 Booth Level Agents (BLAs) from political parties, are carrying out the verification process across the state. The EC has directed that voters must submit completed enumeration forms by July 25 or risk deletion from the rolls. Appeals and corrections can be submitted between August 1 and September 1.

 

Opposition parties condemn Bihar's SIR

Opposition parties have condemned the SIR as an exclusionary exercise with political motives. Congress, RJD, Trinamool Congress, CPI(M), and CPI(ML) have accused the EC of acting under pressure from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and attempting to suppress voter participation among disadvantaged groups.

 

“With the support of the Election Commission, the master plan that the BJP had devised to deprive crores of people in Bihar of their voting rights now seems to be ensnaring the BJP itself,” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday said in a post on X. He claimed that nearly 80 million voters may suffer because of the revision.

 

Kharge also pointed to an EC advertisement that appeared on Sunday, which states that voters only need to fill out a form, without attaching documents.

 

 

Civil society groups file lawsuits against SIR

Civil society groups have taken the issue to the Supreme Court. Petitioners include the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), political activist Yogendra Yadav, and MP Mahua Moitra.

 

The ADR has argued that the SIR violates several constitutional provisions and unfairly shifts the burden of proof from the state to individual voters. It also criticised the EC’s exclusion of Aadhaar and ration cards as valid identity documents, warning that many poor and rural voters may lack access to acceptable alternatives.

 

The petition noted that a Special Summary Revision was already conducted between October 2024 and January 2025 to address deaths and migration, and questioned the need for another sweeping exercise so close to elections.

 

Electoral roll update a necessity, not political: EC

Despite the backlash, the EC insists the process is proceeding smoothly. It announced on Sunday that the initial phase had been completed and that 21 per cent of forms had already been received. The Commission has reiterated its commitment to following constitutional norms and working transparently with all stakeholders.

 

It continues to maintain that the revision is based on demographic data and electoral necessity, not political considerations.

 

BIhar elections are expected to take place in October or November this year.