The Election Commission of India accused opposition parties on Saturday of raising electoral roll concerns at the wrong time, and scheduled a press conference for Sunday that will coincide with Congress launching a statewide yatra on in poll-bound Bihar
The commission is scheduled to address a briefing at 3pm on Sunday, as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi begins a 16-day “Voter Adhikar Yatra” in Bihar against what the opposition party says is alleged voter fraud via the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) that has led to 6.5 million people being excluded from the state’s electoral rolls.
“It seems that some political parties and their Booth Level Agents (BLAs) did not examine the electoral rolls at the appropriate time and did not point out errors, if any, to SDMs/EROs, DEOs or CEOs,” the commission said in a statement on Saturday, referring to a process that occurs yearly.
The poll body said parties are now raising concerns outside the designated process. “Recently, some political parties and individuals are raising issues about errors in electoral rolls, including the electoral rolls prepared in the past,” it said.
The commission said there was a proper procedure for addressing electoral roll concerns. “The appropriate time to raise any issue with the electoral rolls would have been during the claims and objections period of that phase, which is precisely the objective behind sharing the electoral rolls with all political parties and the candidates,” it stated.
“Had these issues been raised at the right time through the right channels, it would have enabled the concerned SDM/EROs to correct the mistakes, if genuine, before those elections,” the commission added.
Typically, every year, electoral rolls undergo summary revision with a qualifying date of January 1, when citizens turning 18 become eligible voters. During this process, draft rolls are published, followed by a claims and objections period lasting several weeks where political parties and voters can challenge inclusions or exclusions. The final rolls are then published by January 31, giving parties multiple opportunities annually to scrutinise and correct electoral data through established legal channels.
It is likely these draft rolls that the EC was referring to, but did not specify in its statement on Saturday.
The poll body will hold a press conference on Sunday featuring Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and both Election Commissioners, though officials have not specified the subject. People aware of the details said the commission will discuss “recent issues and allegations” regarding the Bihar verification drive.
Officials aware of the matter told HT that the presser is a response to the Opposition’s concerns on SIR especially the Congress’s.
Gandhi has alleged “vote chori (vote theft)” in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana, accusing the poll panel of voter data manipulation. On August 7, he claimed there were 100,250 “stolen” votes in Bangalore Central’s Mahadevapura assembly segment that helped the BJP win the 2024 Lok Sabha seat, accusing the commission of “colluding” with the ruling party.
The presentation prompted an immediate reaction from the commission, which asked Gandhi to send a signed declaration and oath supporting his allegations. Commission officials have since urged Gandhi to either sign the oath or “apologise” to the nation.
The commission said it welcomes scrutiny. “ECI continues to welcome the scrutiny of Electoral Rolls by Political Parties and any Elector. It will help SDMs/EROs to remove the errors and purify the Electoral Rolls which has always been the objective of ECI,” it stated.
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