Bihar Voter List: Over 1.95 Lakh Requests Filed, 25,000 Resolved So Far

Quick Summary

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) has received 1.95 lakh demands for inclusion or exclusion of names from Bihar’s draft voter list, with nearly 25,000 resolved so far.
• Political parties CPI (ML)-Liberation and RJD have filed a total of 82 objections, whereas no national party, including BJP and Congress, has submitted claims yet. Four days remain in the claims process.
• over 60 lakh names were excluded from the draft voter roll published on August 1 due to various reasons.
• As of now,99.11% of required documentation for Bihar’s voters (7.24 crore individuals) has been completed under the Special Intensive Revision initiative.
• From june 24 to August 24-the ongoing two-month process-98.2% of eligible electors submitted their requisite documents.
• The Supreme Court recently directed the ECI to publish names and reasons for excluding electors from the draft roll while allowing Aadhaar or any other listed documents as valid proofs for inclusion requests.

Indian Opinion Analysis

The ongoing revision process highlights both progress and contentious issues around electoral rolls in Bihar ahead of polls. While achieving over 99% documentation compliance reflects robust administrative efforts by the ECI, concerns persist given previous exclusions affecting lakhs of voters.

The negligible volume of challenges at this stage-relative to over six million exclusions-raises questions about public outreach and accessibility during this corrective phase. Political engagement largely comes from regional parties like CPI(ML)-Liberation and RJD but not from major national players yet.

Looking ahead, adherence to Supreme Court directives on clarity regarding exclusions will be crucial in maintaining trust in democratic institutions among all stakeholders in Bihar’s electoral landscape.Read more