Shri. M. A. Baby, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has written a Petition to the Chief Election Commissioner, regarding the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls.

We are herewith releasing the text of the Petition for publication.

 February 10, 2026

 

The Chief Election Commissioner

Election Commission of India

Nirvachan Sadan, Ashoka Road

New Delhi – 110 001

 

Dear Sir,

We are once again approaching you, expressing our grave concern regarding the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls.

While we recognise that periodic revision of electoral rolls is a routine and essential democratic exercise, the manner, timing, and methodology of the present SIR depart sharply from established law, past practice, and constitutional principles. Far from being a routine, transparent, and citizen-friendly process, the present SIR has turned into a chaotic, arbitrary, and exclusionary exercise that threatens both the integrity of the electoral rolls and the fundamental right to vote.

Unrealistic Timeframe: Undertaking an extensive and intrusive revision exercise just months before elections, within an unrealistically compressed timeframe inevitably vitiates the electoral atmosphere and is fraught with the danger of large-scale errors and exclusions.

This exercise, as reports have indicated, has led to a number of BLOs succumbing to pressure and unfortunately taking their own lives. It has also led to distress among a number of voters who also have chosen the same path, especially in West Bengal.

Lack of Consultation: As we had pointed out in our initial petition to you, recognised political parties, who are an equal stakeholder in the democratic process in our country were not taken into confidence prior to the launch of this exercise.

Burden on Voters: To reiterate, the responsibility for identifying and deleting ineligible voters ordinarily rests with Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and Electoral Registration Officers (EROs). Imposing the burden on already-enrolled voters to re-establish their eligibility, failing which deletion is threatened, is arbitrary, unlawful, and contrary to settled procedure. 

Experience of Implementation

There are several issues that came up during the implementation of this exercise both in Bihar earlier and in the other states where the exercise is on currently. Non-delivery of enumeration forms, lack of awareness of alternative procedures, limited or no access to digital means apart from unreasonable documentary requirements has led to exclusion. The marginalised and minorities, especially women in the rural areas, have been disproportionally impacted. 

Like in Bihar where we saw the proportion of voters to population decrease, we fear the same will be repeated in other states as well.

Widespread misuse of Form 7 by individuals, in some cases a single individual filing hundreds of these forms have surfaced in Assam, Rajasthan and some other states.

Our apprehension that the design and implementation of the SIR would closely resemble the proposed NRC exercise, and would lead to selective disenfranchisement of certain communities, is turning true.

State-Specific Experiences

Assam: In Assam it has been reported that there is widespread misuse of Form 7 through mass third-party objections filed using misappropriated Election Photo Identity Card (EPIC) and mobile numbers. In districts such as Sribhumi (Karimganj), single individuals have filed hundreds of objections. Media reports and complaints allege harassment of Bengali-speaking Muslim voters and pressure on BLOs by political actors.

Kerala: Voters erroneously deleted are being forced to apply afresh using Form 6, rendering their old EPICs invalid and treating them as new voters for no fault of theirs. Errors in the ECI’s own pre-2002 voter lists are being used to issue notices and raise objections against voters registered after 2002. Abnormally high volumes of Forms 6, 6A, and 8, large-scale constituency shifts and lack of transparency in publishing data, raise serious concerns.

Tamil Nadu: Over 97 lakh voters were removed from the base list, with disproportionately high numbers marked as “dead” or “not traceable,” far exceeding plausible demographic trends. Improper notices are being issued, searchable lists are unavailable, and political parties have not been provided relevant data for verification. Married women, tenants, and displaced persons are disproportionately affected.

West Bengal: An untested and opaque software system is being used to flag “logical discrepancies,” leading to mass, automated notice generation, contrary to representations made before the Hon’ble Supreme Court. Electoral officers are being forced into quasi-judicial determinations affecting nearly 1.5 crore electors within impossibly short timelines. A parallel system with the appointment of micro-observers undermining the regular channels of the EC has been put in place in the state.

The SIR in West Bengal has turned out to be one of the most controversial. Large sections of the population are going through nightmares and a number of voters have taken their own lives unable to cope with it.

Legal Concerns

While citizenship is a prerequisite for voter enrolment, its determination does not fall within the jurisdiction of the Election Commission of India. Under the guise of the SIR what is becoming apparent is the initiation of the process to determine citizenship. Utterances by the Assam Chief Minister have only added grist to the mill.

The Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 clearly lay down that in the case of an intensive revision the Rules applicable to first-time preparation of electoral rolls apply. Such a revision proceeds on a “blank roll”, where additions are made. The present SIR does not begin with a blank roll, nor does it provide for systematic addition. Instead, it is designed to delete names defeating the very purpose of the law.

While over the past few years various measures including vote from home for the elderly and disabled have been put in place, in this SIR exercise voters both these sections have been summoned for hearings at inaccessible centres far away from their places of residence.

The right to vote is the bedrock of our democracy. Any process that threatens its universal and equal exercise must be halted and reconsidered with utmost seriousness.

In view of the above, we once again urge the Election Commission of India to abandon this exercise which is turning into a war against the people. 

M. A. Baby

(General Secretary)