The Election Commission of India (ECI) announced on Sunday a week-long extension for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which is being conducted across nine States and three Union Territories.
With the updated schedule, the distribution of enumeration forms, initially set to conclude on December 4, will now extend until December 11. The publication of the draft electoral rolls has been postponed from December 9 to December 16, while the final voters’ list will now be released on February 14, 2026, rather than the previously scheduled date of February 7.
The SIR exercise was first announced for these States and UTs on October 27. It has attracted significant scrutiny from opposition parties and election experts, and is expected to become a contentious issue in Parliament as the winter session begins.
Leaders from the Trinamool Congress and other opposition parties recently met with Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in New Delhi, requesting the Commission to reevaluate the schedule. During this meeting, they advocated for a more structured approach to the SIR, especially after reports indicated severe pressure on booth-level officers (BLOs) who are responsible for door-to-door verification under strict deadlines.
Tragic incidents involving BLOs have been reported in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, raising concerns about the mental strain associated with their duties. In West Bengal, where Assembly elections are expected early next year, tensions surrounding the revision process have intensified. As of November 29, the ECI identified approximately 1.87 million deceased voters still listed on the existing electoral rolls in the state.
The comprehensive revision is currently taking place across nine states: Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh, along with three Union Territories: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry. The governments in Tamil Nadu and Kerala have organized multiple protests against the SIR, while West Bengal has also seen considerable resistance to the process.
Simultaneously, petitions challenging certain aspects of the SIR have been submitted to the Supreme Court, which has agreed to hear a combined plea from several states.
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