The Election Commission of India (ECI) has told the Supreme Court that no voter’s name will be deleted from Bihar’s draft electoral roll without first giving a proper public notice.
This draft list of voters was released on August 1 as part of a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise to update the state’s voter database.
This assurance came after the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) approached the court. ADR, represented by advocates Prashant Bhushan and Neha Rathi, wanted details about nearly 65 lakh names that were reportedly removed from the list. In its affidavit, the ECI did not confirm or deny this figure but said the process would remain transparent.
To make sure the draft list is checked properly, the ECI has shared booth-level voter lists with all political parties. These are available both in printed form and as digital files. The public and political parties can examine the draft rolls between August 1 and September 1 to raise objections or suggest corrections.
The ECI is also taking steps to help people who might be at risk of losing their voting rights. Around 2.5 lakh volunteers, most of them officials from the Bihar government, have been appointed to assist eligible citizens. Their main job is to help people collect and submit documents from different state departments so that no one is unfairly left out of the final electoral roll.
This process is important because voter lists decide who can vote in elections. Any mistakes or wrongful deletions can stop people from exercising their right to vote. With the Supreme Court monitoring the matter, the ECI says it is committed to ensuring fairness and accuracy in Bihar’s voter roll update.