Archive · 2 Oct 2026
Election Commission Launches Drive for Voters Left Out After SIR
The Election Commission wants to find eligible people whose names may have disappeared from voter lists after SIR.
It also wants to add young people who are voting for the first time.
Officials will compare older voter lists with newer lists.
They will visit homes to check on people who may have been left out.
Eligible people can apply using a regular Form 6 application.
Booth Level Officers must check about 20 to 25 voters each week.
The Commission hopes to finish this special checking work in about one month.
Political parties will receive lists to help monitor the process.
Opposition parties say SIR may have excluded eligible voters, while the Commission says it removed many deceased voters and made its decisions unanimously.
The Election Commission ordered a special enrolment drive in 20 states and Union territories where the Special Intensive Revision has been completed.
The drive will re-enrol eligible voters omitted from revised rolls and register young and first-time voters through Form 6.
Booth Level Officers must compare pre- and post-SIR rolls, conduct house-to-house checks and cover 20 to 25 electors weekly.
Officials aim to complete the verification exercise within one month and share booth-wise lists with recognised parties’ Booth Level Agents.
Opposition parties allege disenfranchisement, while the Commission says registration remains continuous and more than 60 lakh deceased voters were removed.
- Who
- The Election Commission of India, state election officials, Booth Level Officers, political-party Booth Level Agents, and eligible or newly eligible voters are involved.
- What
- A special drive will identify and enrol eligible voters left out of revised rolls and register young and first-time voters.
- When
- The instructions followed a virtual meeting with state Chief Electoral Officers; the drive is expected to finish within one month. Reports were published on October 2, 2026.
- Where
- The drive applies in 20 states and Union territories where SIR has been completed. Maharashtra is separately continuing its revision and verification process.
- Why
- To provide a route for eligible voters omitted during SIR to seek enrolment and to register new voters through continuous roll updating.
Election Commission’s Position
Opposition Parties’ Position
Effect of SIR
Election Commission’s Position
The Commission says voter registration is continuous and that no eligible citizen should lose voting rights because they were missed during SIR enumeration.
Opposition Parties’ Position
Opposition parties and activists allege that SIR excluded eligible voters and disenfranchised citizens.
Purpose of the special drive
Election Commission’s Position
The drive is intended to correct omissions, enrol young and first-time voters, and improve transparency by involving political parties’ Booth Level Agents.
Opposition Parties’ Position
Critics view the drive as a response to the large number of names removed from draft or revised rolls during SIR.
Commission decision-making
Election Commission’s Position
The Commission says all SIR decisions were approved unanimously.
Opposition Parties’ Position
Reports cited by the articles described allegations of differences within the Commission over SIR decisions.
- Revision exercise
- Special Intensive Revision, or SIR, of electoral rolls.
- Coverage
- SIR has been completed in 20 states and Union territories, where the special drive will operate.
- Application method
- Left-out and new voters can apply through the regular statutory Form 6; the additional SIR declaration applies only during the SIR phase.
- Verification workload
- Each Booth Level Officer must cover 20 to 25 electors per week.
- Target timeline
- The verification exercise is expected to be completed within one month.
- Roll reduction
- The combined rolls in nine states and three Union territories were reduced by 10.2 percent after SIR, with more than 60 lakh deceased voters removed, according to poll-authority and state data.
- Reported draft deletions
- The Indian Express reported that around 13 crore names were struck off draft rolls across 30 states and Union territories.
- Maharashtra verification
- Maharashtra’s draft roll flagged 1.22 crore records for verification, including 62.48 lakh cases involving relatives’ details and 59.75 lakh cases where voters could not be mapped to a relative in the previous roll.
Sources
EC Orders Drive for Left-out, New Voters in States Where SIR Over
Election Commission orders special drive for left-out, new voters in states where SIR over
EC orders special drive for left-out, new voters in states where SIR over
EC Orders Drive To Restore Left-Out Voters
