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Election Commission
The Election Commission (EC) told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that it has the power and competence to undertake a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls, besides there is a constitutional duty to ensure that no foreigners are registered as voters. The submissions were made by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi on behalf of the EC before a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi. The bench resumed final hearings on a batch of petitions challenging the EC's decision to undertake the SIR exercise in several states, including Bihar, raising significant constitutional questions on the scope of the poll panel's powers, citizenship and the right to vote. Dwivedi pointed out that all key constitutional functionaries across the three organs of the State must be Indian citizens, citing provisions such as Article 124(3) of the Constitution relating to the appointment of Supreme Court and high court judges. He said one of the key conditions for the appointme
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged on Tuesday that the Election Commission is using mobile applications developed by the BJP's IT cell to conduct the ongoing SIR exercise in the state. Speaking to reporters before concluding her two-day visit to Sagar Island in South 24 Parganas district to oversee preparations for the upcoming Gangasagar Mela, Banerjee accused the EC of "resorting to all kinds of wrong moves while conducting the electoral roll revision. The EC is resorting to all kinds of wrong moves for conducting the SIR. It is marking eligible voters as dead' and forcing the elderly, ill and indisposed to attend hearings. It is making use of mobile apps developed by the BJP's IT cell for the exercise. This is illegal, unconstitutional and undemocratic. This cannot go on, the chief minister alleged. The TMC supremo's fresh set of allegations against the poll panel was made on a day when her party MP Derek O'Brien moved the Supreme Court against the EC, claiming it
The Election Commission has revised the schedule for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Uttar Pradesh, with the draft voter list now slated to be published on January 6, 2026, and the final list on March 6, the state's Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa said in a statement on Tuesday. According to the new schedule, claims and objections will be invited from January 6 to February 6, he said. Rinwa said the notice stage, disposal of claims and objections, and decisions on enumeration forms will continue from January 6 to February 27, after which the final electoral roll will be published on March 6. The revision of the schedule comes amid heightened scrutiny of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in the state, where a large-scale pruning of voter list has been carried out. The nearly 52-day SIR exercise, conducted with the theme 'Shuddh Nirvachak Namavali, Majboot Loktantra' (Clean Electoral Roll, Strong Democracy), began on November 4 and ...
Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal took a swipe at the government on Monday over the death of booth-level officers in various parts of the country engaged in the SIR exercise, asking whether the presence of one alleged "infiltrator" was not okay, but the death of BLOs was okay. Sibal's remarks came a day after a Booth Level Officer (BLO) was found dead in West Bengal's Bankura district, triggering allegations that work-related pressure linked to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls may have played a role. "Yet another suicide by a Bengal BLO. Total pan-India: 33. If one alleged 'ghuspetia (infiltrator)', that's not OK, if 33 BLOs die, is that Ok?" Sibal said in a post on X. Union Home Minister Amit Shah said last month that the government would throw out infiltrators from the country and alleged that some political parties are opposing the SIR exercise as they want the names of infiltrators to remain on the electoral rolls. The latest death of a BLO occurred in t
Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday claimed that the removal of 2.89 crore voters' names in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) campaign has sparked an infight within the ruling BJP. Yadav's remark came in the wake of a meeting of BJP MLAs from the Brahman community in Lucknow. "While the apparent reason for the infighting within the Uttar Pradesh BJP may be a 'rebel meeting,' the real reason is that news has already spread among BJP MLAs that 2.89 crore voters' names have been removed in the SIR," he said in a statement. On December 23, BJP MLAs from the Brahmin community met at the Lucknow residence of party MLA from Kushinagar district, P N Pathak. Around 40 MLAs from Purvanchal and Bundelkhand participated in this meeting, which stoked types of speculations. "According to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, who has 'one year left' in his term, approximately 85-90 per cent of his own voters have been removed from the list. The political mathematical anal
The names of 10.56 lakh voters have been deleted after the Special Revision of electoral rolls in Assam, where assembly polls would be in less than six months. According to the integrated draft rolls released by the Election Commission on Saturday, the state has a total of 2,51,09,754 voters, excluding 93,021 D-Voters or doubtful voters. Additionally, the names of 10,56,291 voters have been deleted due to death, shifting, or multiple entries. D-Voters are a category of voters in Assam who have been disenfranchised by the government on account of their alleged lack of proper citizenship credentials. D-Voters are determined by special tribunals under the Foreigners Act, 1946, and the person declared as a D-Voter is not given a voter card. All related particulars, such as name, age and photograph, of D-Voters have been carried forward to the draft electoral roll without any change. The draft rolls were published after house-to-house verification of the Special Revision was held from .
The hearings under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in West Bengal will commence on Saturday, with 3,234 centres set up across the state, a senior official said. Around 32 lakh "unmapped" voters, those who are unable to establish linkage with the 2002 electoral roll, will be called for hearings in the first phase, he said. Voters will be allowed to submit any of 12 recognised documents, including Aadhaar, as proof of identity and address, the official at the office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) said on Friday. However, the commission has clarified that the Aadhaar card will not be accepted as a standalone document. "Electoral lists prepared during the recent SIR exercise in Bihar will also be considered valid documents. However, submission of fake or forged documents will be treated as a punishable offence," the official warned. State Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal said all preparations for the hearings have been completed. "Th
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday lashed out at the Election Commission, alleging that there were gross errors in the SIR exercise conducted so far in the state. Addressing a meeting of TMC's booth level agents at the Netaji Indoor Stadium here, Banerjee also alleged that the EC was appointing observers without informing the state govt, and working to foster the BJP's interests. The Election Commission is working only as per the directions of the BJP. There are gross errors in mapping of voters during the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise in the state, she alleged. The TMC supremo also asserted that cental officers who have been appointed micro observers for SIR hearings have little knowledge of the local language, and are unfit to conduct the verifications during the second phase of the ongoing revision exercise.
Stressing the need for "purification of electoral rolls" from time to time, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday said only Indian citizens should be in the voters' list. Addressing the Booth Level Officers (BLOs) of Telangana here, he said India is the world's largest democracy. The BLOs formed the backbone of India's electoral system and the success of electoral roll purification depended on their diligence and integrity. He noted that the global community closely watched India's elections to understand how the world's largest democracy functioned. He said during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the BLOs of Bihar had shown the way to the country. Under the phase-III of SIR, Telangana would demonstrate to the entire country how the exercise should be conducted. On the SIR undertaken by the Election Commission in Bihar, he said the exercise had been carried out flawlessly. The list of deleted electors in Bihar included 22 lakh who had passed
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday called Union Home Minister Amit Shah "dangerous", and warned that she would sit on a dharna if even a single eligible voter's name was struck off from the list during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Launching a blistering attack on Shah, the chief minister said at a rally in Krishnanagar in Nadia district, "The country's home minister is dangerous. You can see it in his eyes it's terrifying. In one eye, you see 'Duryodhan', and in the other, 'Dushasan'." Alleging that the SIR was being used as a political weapon ahead of the 2026 assembly polls, Banerjee said, "If even a single eligible voter's name is struck off, I will sit on a dharna. There will be no detention camps in West Bengal. They are so hungry for votes that they are conducting the SIR just two months before elections." Banerjee said that she herself had not filled out her enumeration form so far. "Do I now need to prove my citizensh
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the BJP is turning the Election Commission into a "tool" for "vote chori". Sharing a clip of his speech during a discussion on election reforms in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, Gandhi said on X, "India's public is asking these 3 very important and direct questions: 1. Why was the CJI removed from the EC selection panel? 2. Why was almost complete legal immunity given to the EC before the 2024 elections? 3. Why the hurry to destroy CCTV footage within 45 days?" "The answer is one - BJP is turning the Election Commission into a tool for vote theft," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said. In a no-holds-barred attack, Gandhi on Tuesday alleged that the BJP and the Election Commission were "colluding to destroy" India's democracy and "rob people of their voice". Participating in the discussion on election reforms, Gandhi claimed the BJP is "directing and using" the Election Commission to damage India's democracy. Making suggestion
Congress MP Manish Tewari on Tuesday claimed that the Election Commission legally has no right to conduct the SIR and it must be stopped, as he asserted that many Opposition leaders as well as people now feel the need to raise questions over the poll body's neutrality. Initiating a discussion on Election Reforms in the Lok Sabha, Tewari said the first election reform should be to amend the law of 2023 on the selection of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners. He said the law stipulates that the panel be comprised of the prime minister, the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha and a cabinet minister. "It is my suggestion that two members should be added to this panel -- the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and the Chief Justice of India. "If such a committee is formed then 'theek se khela hobega' and it will play an important role in removing the doubts over the Election Commission (EC)," Tewari said. The Congress leader said that BR Ambedkar ensured th