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Former Judges to Examine Legality and Impact of Voter Roll Revision
A group of five retired judges will study a change to India’s voter lists.
The change is called the Special Intensive Revision, or SIR.
The judges will check whether the process followed the law and how it affected people who can vote.
They will also look at whether eligible voters stayed on the list and whether ineligible names were removed.
The group plans to hold public meetings around the country.
Citizens, community groups and experts can share their experiences.
Researchers and legal experts will help examine data and rules.
The panel aims to share its report by December 2026.
The Lawyers’ Association for Constitution formed a five-member panel of retired judges to examine the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Former Supreme Court judge Madan B. Lokur will chair the panel; its other members are A. K. Patnaik, Badar Durrez Ahmad, Rekha Sharma and Anjana Prakash.
The panel will assess the revision’s constitutional and statutory validity, methodology, and effects on eligible voters.
Its work will include public hearings, research into voter roll additions and deletions, and legal review of relevant laws and procedures.
The association said the panel aims to publish its final report by December 2026.
- Who
- The Lawyers’ Association for Constitution formed a panel chaired by former Supreme Court judge Madan B. Lokur, with four other retired judges.
- What
- The panel will examine the legality, methods and impact of the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
- Where
- The inquiry concerns electoral rolls across India, with public hearings planned in different locations around the country.
- When
- The association announced the panel in a press release dated October 2, 2026; it aims to publish its report by December 2026.
- Why
- The association said the panel responds to citizens’ concerns about the SIR’s design, implementation and consequences.
Concerns prompting the review
Election Commission’s response
Decision-making and electoral-roll changes
Concerns prompting the review
The article says protests followed an investigation reporting that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected on record 14 times in 10 months to decisions made in the Commission’s name without their knowledge, including changes involving Form 6, voter deletions and ECINET.
Election Commission’s response
A separate article referenced in the report says the Election Commission clarified that its SIR orders were unanimous and that changes to Form 6 had been upheld by the Supreme Court. The supplied article does not provide further details of that clarification.
Key facts
- Panel size
- Five members
- Chair
- Former Supreme Court judge Madan B. Lokur
- Other members
- A. K. Patnaik, Badar Durrez Ahmad, Rekha Sharma and Anjana Prakash
- Subject
- Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls
- Planned inquiry
- Review of constitutional and statutory validity, methodology and impact
- Public engagement
- Public hearings will record views and testimony from affected citizens, civil society organisations and experts
- Target report date
- December 2026
Quotes
Lawyers’ Association for Constitution
The association that established the panel and issued its statement about the inquiry.
“The newly-formed independent commission of former judges on the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral roll will function with complete autonomy to examine the constitutional and statutory validity, methodology and overall impact of the SIR exercise on eligible voters.”
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Sources
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