Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 18: As the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls continues in Bihar, the Chief Electoral Officer's (CEO) office has processed 1,348 applications for inclusion or exclusion of names from the draft voter list, with 14 days still remaining for filing claims and objections.

According to an Election Commission of India (ECI) bulletin issued on Monday, a total of 45,616 claims and objections have been received directly from voters since the SIR process began. These include corrections to names, addresses, and requests for inclusion or deletion based on eligibility.

The ECI clarified that, under election rules, these applications are reviewed and decided by the concerned Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) or Assistant EROs seven days after the eligibility documents are verified.

Interestingly, despite the passage of 18 days since the draft rolls were published on August 1, no political party has filed any formal complaints or objections so far, the commission noted.

Amid ongoing criticism from Opposition parties alleging irregularities in the voter rolls that may disenfranchise lakhs of voters, the ECI has pushed back, stating that the revision process has been transparent and open to scrutiny. It has also reiterated that all political parties and their booth-level agents (BLAs) are welcome to participate and raise genuine concerns.

The draft list publication marked the culmination of a large-scale enumeration phase conducted between June 24 and July 25, during which over 7.24 crore voters (out of a total of 7.89 crore) submitted enumeration forms. Post-verification, about 65 lakh entries were removed due to various reasons:

• 22 lakh electors were found to be deceased
• 36 lakh were either permanently relocated or untraceable
• 7 lakh were registered in multiple locations

Meanwhile, the process of adding new voters has also been active. Since August 1, more than 1.52 lakh individuals aged 18 and above have applied to be added to the voter list.

Despite their vocal criticism, political parties have been slow to act officially. The ECI pointed out that out of 1.60 lakh registered BLAs across parties:

• RJD has 47,506
• Congress has 17,549 (a 105% increase since June)
• JD(U) has 36,550
• BJP has 53,338

In its latest appeal, the ECI said:

“We urge all stakeholders to actively submit claims and objections to ensure the accuracy of the draft electoral rolls. So far, not a single objection has come from any political party.”

With just two weeks left before the claims window closes, the Commission emphasized that accuracy and transparency depend on collective participation, not just administrative effort.