Page 7 - Election Commission Of India

Lok Sabha to continue SIR discussion on 8th day of ongoing winter session

The upper house of Parliament is also set to take up discussion on electoral reforms after further discussion on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram on Wednesday

Vote chori anti-national act, EC colluding with BJP: Rahul Gandhi

BJP defends EVMs, cites Rajiv Gandhi's pilot project, accuses Opposition of double standards

Supreme Court warns of 'anarchy' as BLOs face threats during SIR process

The Supreme Court voiced concern over booth-level officers being threatened during the SIR of electoral rolls and asked the Election Commission to flag any non-cooperation by states

EC has no legal right to conduct SIR, claims Congress' Manish Tewari

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

StatsGuru: Half the nation's electoral power hinges on the SIR exercise

India's voter base continues to expand, with 12 states adding 160 million electors since 2004 as the Election Commission prepares to release fresh SIR data on December 16

Around 76.2 mn enumeration forms digitised in Bengal since SIR launch: EC

An estimated 7.62 crore enumeration forms have so far been digitised in West Bengal, over a month after the launch of the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state ahead of the 2026 assembly polls. An Election Commission official said 99.43 per cent of the total number of distributed enumeration forms were digitised till Saturday afternoon. West Bengal now stands eighth among the 12 other states/Union Territories in terms of progress in digitisation of enumeration forms, after Lakshadeep, Rajasthan, Goa, Andaman and Nicobar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Puducherry, he said. A total of 7,66,16,840 enumeration forms have been distributed since November 4, the beginning of the SIR process, till December 6, the official said.

ECI extends Kerala electoral roll revision timeline ahead of polls

The Election Commission of India on Friday decided to extend by one week the SIR schedule for Kerala in view of the upcoming local body polls in the state. The local body polls will be held in the state on December 9 and 11 in two phases. The commission's order comes after Kerala submitted a request, as permitted by the Supreme Court, to extend the last dates for submission of the enumeration forms and other procedures which are part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll. Under the revised schedule, the draft electoral roll will be published on December 23 as against the earlier date of December 16. The final electoral roll will be published on February 21, 2026 as against the earlier date of February 14, 2026, the commission said.

SC directs states to deploy more staff to support BLOs on SIR duty

Amid reports of multiple BLO deaths during the electoral roll revision, the Supreme Court ordered states to deploy additional staff and consider exemptions on a case-by-case basis to reduce hardships

Suvendu Adhikari urges EC for stricter monitoring during SIR in West Bengal

Earlier this week, Suvendu wrote to the Chief Election Commissioner, alleging a violation of the "neutrality" principle and misuse of police by the TMC government during the SIR exercise

CEC Gyanesh Kumar assumes chair of international poll body for 2026

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Wednesday assumed the chairship of the Council of Member States of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) for the year 2026 at Stockholm. In his acceptance speech, Kumar highlighted the scale of India's democratic exercise, noting that the country has over 900 million electors across 28 states and eight Union Territories. Reflecting upon the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he said that India witnessed a breathtaking democratic spectacle where over 20,000 candidates from 743 political parties, including six national and 67 state parties, participated. Affirming the direction ahead, the chief election commissioner (CEC) pledged that India's chairmanship will be decisive, ambitious and action-oriented. As chair, Kumar will steer the council's work around India's overall theme for the Chairship "Democracy for an inclusive, peaceful, resilient and sustainable world", the Election Commission said in a

SC urges ECI to extend time for submitting forms for electoral rolls

A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was informed that the ECI had already extended the original deadline from December 4 to December 11

2,208 booths in Bengal under scanner after 0 dead or duplicate voters found

A total of 2,208 booths in West Bengal are under the scanner after all the distributed enumeration forms were returned filled up, indicating that there is not a single dead, duplicate or untraceable voter in these booths, EC sources said. Among such booths, the highest 760 is in South 24 Parganas district, followed by 228 in Purulia and 226 in Murshidabad, they said. Howrah district has 94 such booths and Kolkata one. West Bengal currently has a little over 78,000 booths, spread across 294 assembly constituencies. "We have asked for reports from the officials of these districts and areas. Apart from the absence of any dead voter, these booths don't have any duplicate or untraceable voter... these booths are under the scanner," an EC source said. The EC said 7,65,62,486 forms were distributed till Monday afternoon, the 27th day of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which was launched on November 4. That is 99.90 per cent of the total electorate. The EC said a tot

Controversy over SIR in TN baseless, driven by political motives: ECI to SC

Election Commission tells Supreme Court allegations are exaggerated, cites high verification and political participation

Govt not averse to taking up discussion on SIR, electoral reforms: Rijiju

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday asserted in the Rajya Sabha that the government is not averse to holding a discussion on SIR or electoral reforms, as he asked the Opposition not to insist on setting a timeline. He was responding to opposition members who were demanding an immediate discussion on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls or electoral reforms in the House. Not satisfied with the minister's response, members of several opposition parties staged a walkout from the Upper House. Responding to the opposition parties' demand to start an immediate discussion on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls or electoral reforms, the minister sought more time to respond to the matter. Chairman CP Radhakrishnan earlier disallowed the notices given by nine opposition members on several issues, including a discussion on SIR under rule 267, leading to protests by the Opposition. The chairman later asked members to raise their Zero Hour ...

Battle of the rolls in Bengal: How SIR is deepening political faultlines

The report looks at how the SIR has widened political faultlines, and triggered anxiety among voters, ahead of Assembly polls next year

SIR to dominate Opposition's agenda in Winter Session of Parliament

Opposition has sought replies on Delhi's air pollution, the new labour codes and more

ECI extends nationwide SIR process by one week amid ongoing roll updates

The Election Commission on Sunday extended by one week the entire schedule of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in nine states and three Union Territories. In a statement, the poll authority said the enumeration form distribution will now continue till December 11 instead of December 4. The draft electoral rolls will now be published on December 16 in place of December 9, while the final voters' list will be out on February 14, 2026 in place of February 7. The EC had announced SIR in these states and UTs on October 27.

EC directs West Bengal DGP to protect poll officials during SIR exercise

The Election Commission wrote to West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar, directing him to ensure the security of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) during the SIR exercise after receiving reports that there is "an apparent threat" to their safety. This is EC's second letter to the state government in three days, expressing concern over the security of poll officials in West Bengal. On Wednesday, the EC wrote to Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Kumar Verma over a "serious security breach" at the CEO's office, following an agitation by a section of BLOs against "excessive work pressure". The EC wrote to the DGP on Friday as state BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya urged Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to immediately visit the state and personally assess what he alleged was an "atmosphere of fear, coercion and intimidation" of BLOs by the ruling Trinamool Congress. "It has come to the notice of the Election Commission of India from various quarters that there is an apparent threat to the safety a

CEC has blood on his hands, says TMC claiming 40 SIR-related deaths in WB

A Trinamool Congress delegation on Friday met the full bench of the Election Commission of India here and alleged that at least 40 SIR-related deaths had taken place in West Bengal, accusing the poll panel chief of having "blood on his hands". The 10-member delegation, led by TMC Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien, met the EC officials amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal. The delegation consisted of Lok Sabha MPs Mahua Moitra, Satabdi Roy, Kalyan Banerjee, Pratima Mondal, Sajda Ahmed, and Rajya Sabha MPs Dola Sen, Mamata Thakur, Saket Gokhale, and Prakash Chik Barik. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, O'Brien said the party raised five questions, but Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar did not give any answers. "We started the meeting by stating that the CEC has blood on his hands. We raised five questions. After this, Kalyan Banerjee, Mahua Moitra, and Mamata Bala Thakur spoke and shared whatever they had to in about

TMC delegation meets full bench of EC amid row over SIR in West Bengal

Amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, a 10-member Trinamool Congress delegation led by Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien met the full bench of the Election Commission here on Friday. The delegation included TMC Lok Sabha MPs Satabdi Roy, Kalyan Banerjee, Pratima Mondal, Sajda Ahmed, and Mahua Moitra, and Rajya Sabha MPs Dola Sen, Mamata Thakur, Saket Gokhale, and Prakash Chik Barik. The meeting comes against the backdrop of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's letter to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, seeking his "immediate intervention" on two recent concerns. Banerjee referred to the state CEO's direction to district election officers not to engage contractual data-entry operators and Bangla Sahayata Kendra staff for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), voters' list cleanup exercise, or other poll-related work, and a proposal to set up polling booths inside private residential complexes. It also follows the T