EC makes public names of 65 lakh deleted voters, INDIA bloc calls it ‘farce’

Patna: The Election Commission (EC) has released the names of nearly 65 lakh electors deleted from Bihar’s draft electoral rolls during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR), following a recent Supreme Court directive.

The Commission said the deletions were carried out on account of deaths, permanent migration, absence at registered addresses, or repeated entries. These names, booth-wise, have been uploaded on the EC website and also displayed at polling stations across the state.

“In light of the interim order passed by the Supreme Court on August 14, 2025, it is hereby notified that the list of such electors whose names were included in the electoral roll of 2025 (before the draft publication) but are not included in the draft roll published on August 1, along with reasons, has been published on the websites of the Chief Electoral Officer, Bihar, and all district election officers,” Chief Electoral Officer Vinod Singh Gunjiyal stated.

Voters can check the details of deletions using their EPIC number in the published list, he added.

The draft rolls, published on August 9, indicated that 22.34 lakh names were struck off as deceased, 36.28 lakh were removed citing permanent migration, and another 7.01 lakh were listed as absent from their registered addresses.

The exercise has attracted legal scrutiny, with several petitions pending before the Supreme Court. Petitioners have alleged that the SIR, confined to Bihar ahead of its assembly elections, was not conducted transparently.

Opposition parties in the state have rejected the EC’s move, claiming it falls short of ensuring fairness. Bihar Congress spokesperson Asit Nath Tiwari said, “The manner in which the lists have been published is tantamount to ridiculing the Supreme Court judgment. From day one, we have been demanding a consolidated, state-wide list of the names that have been included as well as the ones that have been deleted. Today’s exercise is a farce that addresses none of our concerns.”

Tiwari added that voters are compelled to either search their names individually through their EPIC number or access records booth by booth. “Why are they not providing a list of deletions for the entire state? Perhaps because they want to hide the scale at which irregularities have taken place,” he alleged.

Instances have also emerged where voters declared dead were found to be alive. Some such individuals appeared before the Supreme Court, prompting sharp exchanges between counsel.

The CPI(ML) Liberation, also a petitioner in the case, has pressed for accountability from the EC. Party state secretary Kunal said the responsibility of restoring wrongly deleted names should lie with the Commission.

He cited the case of Bhojpur resident Mintu Paswan, whose name was removed after a booth-level officer marked him deceased based on information from neighbours. “When the CEO called up the BLO, the latter said he was misinformed. In no way could any mistake on the part of Paswan be blamed for the deletion. Why is he being asked to go through the process of filling forms and submitting documents? The EC should restore his name unconditionally,” Kunal remarked.

The CPI(ML) leader further questioned why a consolidated list was not being provided. “If logicality is something the EC cares for, then what is the logic behind not making available a consolidated ASD list? It would have enabled political parties like us to detect problems in a more efficient manner,” he said.

Bihar has over 90,000 polling booths. The booth-wise lists, spread across ten columns, contain details such as the name, age, and EPIC number of the voter removed, along with the reason — “mrit” (dead), “sthanantarit” (shifted), or “anupasthit” (absent). The records also note the details of the individual contacted by the BLO and their relationship with the voter in question.

With the Bihar assembly polls approaching, the scrutiny over deletions is expected to intensify. “We wonder if the EC has forgotten that the poll schedule has to be announced in about a month from now,” Kunal said.