The Election Commission of India (ECI) has defended its move to update the voter list in Bihar before the upcoming assembly elections.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said the special intensive revision (SIR) of the voter roll is not only legal but also required under the Representation of the People Act. He explained that the EC can and must review the list ahead of each election, and that critics who argue the revision should happen after voting are mistaken.
### What the SIR means for voters
The SIR lifted 65 lakh names from last year’s list and recently deleted another 3.66 lakh names of ineligible voters. If a voter or a political party believes that a valid name has been wrongly removed or an ineligible name remains, they can file a complaint with the District Magistrate (DM).
Complaints can also be lodged with the electoral registration officer (ERO) before the nomination deadline – there are still about ten days left. Once nominations close, the roll is frozen until the polls finish, so issues raised after that can’t be corrected.
### Making the polls transparent
Kumar urged all contesting candidates to appoint polling agents who will vote early as a “mock poll.” These agents should arrive before the first vote, observe the process, and then collect Form 17C from the presiding officer after the actual voting ends.
The state is set to have more than 160,000 booth‑level agents (BLAs) nominated by parties, and elections teams will work at each polling booth to handle any disputes about voter registration.
### New measures and the road ahead
The election panel has rolled out 17 new initiatives across Bihar, concentrating on the voter list, polling operations, and vote counting. Each of the 243 assembly constituencies has an ERO, and along with 90,207 BLOs the team has cleaned up the roll – a task that had started over two decades ago.
### A call to action
Kumar concluded by inviting voters to treat the election as “a festival of democracy,” echoing the enthusiasm people feel during Chhath. He urged everyone to head to the polls and make their voices heard.
The EC will soon decide whether to hold the Bihar elections in multiple phases, a decision that parties have already voiced their opinions on. In the meantime, the commission’s focus remains on keeping the voter list accurate and the poll process transparent.
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