Despite vociferous protests by opposition parties against the ongoing revision of Bihar’s electoral rolls, no political party has formally approached the Election Commission (EC) with claims or objections in the four days since the draft list was published.
The draft electoral roll, released on August 01 as part of a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Bihar, will remain open for corrections, inclusions, and deletions until September 01. However, according to the Commission, none of the political parties’ appointed booth-level agents submitted claims or objections between 3 pm on August 01 and 3 pm on August 04.
The EC bulletin issued on Monday noted that 1,927 individuals had so far come forward with requests for inclusion or deletion of names from the draft list.
This silence from political stakeholders comes even as opposition parties have staged protests, alleging that the SIR process could disenfranchise “crores of eligible voters” due to documentation requirements. The Commission has repeatedly dismissed these fears, asserting that “no eligible citizen will be left out of the electoral rolls.”
The special revision has been ordered ahead of the Assembly elections in Bihar, where concerns over voter data accuracy and exclusions have long been contentious political flashpoints.
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Opposition leaders have claimed that the EC's insistence on stricter documentation may lead to disenfranchisement among marginalised communities, especially in rural and migrant populations. Yet, their inaction in filing claims or objections during the initial period raises questions over the sincerity of their participation in the democratic process.
The Commission reiterated that the current phase is an opportunity for all stakeholders--including political parties--to actively participate in cleansing and verifying the voter rolls. “The claims and objections window is a standard democratic mechanism to ensure the rolls are inclusive and accurate,” an EC official said.
The final electoral roll will be published on September 30.
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