At least 35 lakh names could be dropped from Bihar’s voter list when the draft electoral rolls are published on August 1, according to the Election Commission (EC). The changes are part of a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls ahead of the Bihar assembly polls, scheduled for October-November this year.

So far, 88.18% of the state’s 7.89 crore registered voters have been covered in the door-to-door verification process.

Why are mames being removed?

According to the EC, about 6.6 crore voters have either submitted their enumeration forms or have been marked as deceased, shifted out of Bihar, or found registered in more than one location.

Of these, 35 lakh names, nearly 5%, are being excluded due to the following reasons:

  • 12.5 lakh voters (1.59%) have passed away.

  • 17.5 lakh (2.2%) have permanently moved out of the state.

  • 5.5 lakh (0.73%) were registered in two places.

The EC clarified that this data is based on two rounds of home visits done during the revision process.

Deadline approaching for those yet to submit forms

Only 11.82% of voters are yet to submit their filled enumeration forms (EFs), the poll panel said. However, many have requested extra time to do so, and the EC has assured that those who miss the July 25 deadline can still apply later.

Names for which forms are not submitted before July 25 will not appear in the draft roll. But voters will still get a chance to apply through Form 6 during the claims and objections period.

Booth-level agents (BLAs) can also continue submitting up to 10 forms per day even after the draft list is out.

The revision process had started with strong opposition criticism and also reached the Supreme Court, with over 10 petitions filed, including one by the NGOAssociation for Democratic Reforms.

On Thursday, the top court allowed the EC to carry on with its scrutiny, calling the voter list revision a “constitutional mandate.” The court also directed the EC to accept documents like Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards for verifying voter identity during the process.

The final voter list is scheduled to be published on September 30.

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