Former Chief Election Commissioner OP Rawat says that though the Election Commission of India (ECI) is legally empowered to conduct the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s electoral rolls, its timing appears impractical, as the gap between the schedule publication of final electoral rolls and conduct of assembly elections is too narrow--of barely two months--which will be insufficient for the aggrieved to go in for appeal. In a freewheeling conversation with Mukesh Ranjan, he feels that the controversies following the Maharashtra assembly elections might have weighed on the Commission’s mind, and it wished to avoid a similar situation after the Bihar polls. Excerpts:
Why is the ECI conducting the SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar?
The Constitution and election laws permit and empower it to revise electoral rolls, either summarily or intensively, before every election to update the voters’ list. Usually, it is done once in five years in sync with elections to the Lok Sabha or state assemblies. This ensures that the names of those who are deceased or have migrated are removed, and those who have reached 18 years of age and have come to reside are included. The exercise makes the electoral rolls inclusive just before the elections, ensuring that nobody is left out.
Is it right on the Commission’s part to go for an SIR in Bihar at this juncture?
The Election Commission has every right to conduct an SIR of the electoral rolls. However, the timing is an issue in the case of Bihar, as the state is scheduled to go to the polls for assembly elections in the next four months. This has created panic among the public and political parties. In 2003, when the last SIR was conducted, there was ample time of nearly one and a half years before the next elections. In the current situation, if a person’s name is deleted from the final list, they won’t have sufficient time to appeal and seek redressal. Usually, in India, such an exercise takes at least six to eight months. In this situation, a bona fide voter may be denied the opportunity to vote, as there is a gap of less than two months between the publication of the final voters’ list and the assembly elections in Bihar.
Therefore, if the Election Commission had considered conducting the SIR, it should have done so after the 2024 general election, as that would have given it ample time to complete the process.
What do you think made the ECI go in for such a mammoth and cumbersome exercise on the eve of the Bihar elections?
I believe it was due to the controversy over the voters’ list raised by the opposition parties immediately after the Maharashtra assembly elections. The issues they brought up could be settled only through an SIR, and also to avoid a repeat of Maharashtra after the Bihar results, possibly. That’s why the Commission might have thought of going for it.
How far is the Election Commission right in limiting the documents required to prove Indian citizenship to 11?
On this, the Election Commission has already blinked and allowed electors to submit their forms even without any of the 11 documents it had prescribed. However, the problem now is that if you allow people to submit their documents up to the stage of claims and objections, then all their names will be included in the draft electoral rolls, which will further complicate the process. In this situation, the onus will be on the victims to prove it otherwise.
How do you assess the opposition parties’ demand for inclusion of Aadhaar, ration card, or voter ID card as proof for inclusion in the electoral rolls?
For citizens within the context of the 1995 Supreme Court ruling, there may be many other documents to prove and claim that they are genuine voters. For example, if I were born in 1987 and my parents’ names appear in the 2003 electoral rolls, and they have never travelled abroad or do not have a passport, I would become a citizen by birth. Even a certificate issued by a Panchayat or a Municipal body could also be considered for allowing a person to be included in the voters’ list.
Unconfirmed reports claim the ECI is preparing to launch a similar exercise in West Bengal in August. Assembly elections there are scheduled sometime next April—your comment.
Yes, nearly eight months would be left for the Commission to complete the exercise. However, with experience in Bihar, the Commission can establish some mitigating processes to avoid pitfalls and complete the exercise on time.
Can the Commission complete the exercise amid this controversy before the Bihar assembly elections?
I am confident of the country’s election machinery. It is well-oiled, highly experienced, and dedicated to delivering results. Starting from the first elections in 1951-52, there was no template of electoral rolls available at that time. According to the Government of India Act 1935, there were only 2-3 crore listed voters, compared to an estimated 17 crore. Even election laws were created at that time. Fresh rolls were created, and the elections were held. At that time, many people could not even read and write, so slips were printed with party symbols, distributed among voters, and they were asked to match the boxes of the parties. The legacy has been strengthened with each election in the country by successive Commissions.