West Bengal Scrutiny Push as Dead Voters Top 24 Lakh in SIR Revision
West Bengal Scrutiny Push as Dead Voters Top 24 Lakh in SIR Revision
As the Special Intensive Revision nears its end, officials tighten checks on uncollectable forms in West Bengal, aiming to finalize the draft electoral roll.
The number of ‘uncollectable’ enumeration forms of dead, duplicate, absent, and shifted voters has risen to over 57.5 lakhs in West Bengal, just a day before the enumeration phase of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision is slated to end on December 11, 2025. This rise comes amid a push to ensure accuracy before the draft electoral roll is published.
Of these uncollectable entries, over 24 lakh electors have been identified as dead as of December 10, 2025, based on the latest data. The Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, Manoj Kumar Agarwal, met with Special Roll Observers (SROs) appointed by the Election Commission and urged thorough scrutiny of all entries prior to the final publication of the draft roll. The objective is a meticulous sweep to ensure no eligible person is left out and no ineligible elector is included.
Officials have been directed to verify mappings that may link progeny voters to electors on the 2002 list and to scrutinise any age differences between two electors who claim to be related as parent and child. On December 8, 2025, the Election Commission appointed five senior IAS officers as SROs, in addition to retired IAS officer Subrata Gupta, to monitor the ongoing SIR across different divisions and to strengthen the integrity of the process.
The draft electoral roll is scheduled to be made public on December 16, providing a critical checkpoint for the final roll before voting cycles proceed nationwide.
Cover image source: 36 lakh voters to elect their representatives to local bodies in Malappuram on Dec. 11 🔗
