Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi/Patna, Aug 5: Despite a steady stream of criticism from Opposition parties regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has stated that not a single irregularity has been officially reported by the parties' own booth-level agents.

According to election office sources, while parties have raised concerns publicly — alleging that the revision could lead to mass disenfranchisement — none of the 67,000+ booth-level agents representing Opposition parties such as the RJD (47,506 agents), Congress (17,549), and Left parties (over 2,000) have filed any formal objections or claims regarding errors or voter removals.

Since the release of the draft voter list on August 1, the Bihar State Election Office has only received 2,864 individual applications for inclusion or deletion — a relatively low number given the scope of the exercise.

The ECI emphasized that all political parties were provided with access to the draft electoral rolls for all 90,712 polling booths across 243 Assembly constituencies, and a separate list of voters who were removed since the previous roll (dated June 24) was also shared. Despite this, no claims or objections have been submitted by political parties as of August 5.

The SIR, conducted from June 24 to July 25, saw over 7.24 crore of Bihar’s 7.89 crore electors submitting enumeration forms. The newly released draft rolls excluded around 65 lakh voters, including:

• 22 lakh deceased electors (2.83%)
• 36 lakh who had permanently shifted or were not found (4.59%)
• 7 lakh with duplicate entries (0.89%)

These deletions, according to the ECI, were based on field verification and aimed at cleaning up the rolls ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections.

Officials reiterated that the campaign was driven by the goal of "No Elector Left Behind", with a focus on first-time voters, migrants, urban populations, the elderly, and persons with disabilities.

The ECI has been actively encouraging political parties to engage with the revision process and alert authorities to any potential disenfranchisement. However, the current silence from party representatives on the ground stands in contrast to the sharp public rhetoric, adding a new dimension to the ongoing debate ahead of the high-stakes polls.