Analytical Report: Bihar Voter List Revision – Trends, Implications, and Insights
- By Thetripurapost Desk, Patna
- Sep 30, 2025
- 542
The Election Commission of India (ECI) recently concluded a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar. The final list shows 7.42 crore electors, a 6% reduction from 7.89 crore in June 2025. This marks the first intensive revision in the state since 2003, conducted ahead of the Assembly elections in November.
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1. Patterns in Voter Deletion and Addition
Total deletions: 68.6 lakh
Draft roll deletions: 65 lakh
22 lakh: Dead
36 lakh: Migrated/Absent
7 lakh: Duplicate enrolments
Claims and objections: 3.66 lakh
2 lakh: Migration
60,000: Death
80,000: Duplicate entries
Additions: 21.53 lakh new electors
Insight: The data suggests that most roll corrections were administrative or demographic in nature. Foreign nationals were barely affected, countering opposition claims of a covert citizenship purge.
2. Implications of the SIR
1. Accuracy vs. Inclusivity:
SIR ensures updated rolls, reducing errors from unreported deaths, migration, and duplicates.
However, requiring documentary proof—even for long-standing voters—can risk temporary disenfranchisement, especially among rural, elderly, or marginalized populations.
In a poll-bound state, roll revisions are politically sensitive, especially when documentation is linked to citizenship.
While most deletions were legitimate, opposition narratives framed it as a citizenship check, increasing political tension.
3. Administrative Insight:
The exercise demonstrates the feasibility of large-scale house-to-house enumeration, but also highlights logistical challenges in states with high migration and low literacy.
Adoption of Aadhaar as an additional proof simplifies verification but also raises privacy and accessibility considerations.
Bihar serves as a pilot case for the nationwideLessons for Nationwide Roll Revisions SIR planned by the EC. Key takeaways include:
Effective use of existing data and field verification reduces duplication.
Clear communication is essential to avoid voter confusion and political backlash.
Structured appeal mechanisms (District Magistrate → CEO) help mitigate grievances.
4. Concluding Analysis
The Bihar SIR highlights the delicate balance between roll accuracy and voter accessibility. While the EC successfully removed errors in the rolls, the exercise underscores challenges in document verification, public awareness, and political perception.
Bottom line: Bihar’s experience demonstrates that intensive revisions are feasible and largely effective, buy careful implementation, monitoring, and citizen support are crucial to avoid disenfranchisement or controversy.