The Election Commission has announced details for Phase 2 of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), which will encompass 12 states and Union Territories, including West Bengal. This extensive effort aims to include approximately 51 crore voters.
As part of the process, around 533,000 booth-level officers (BLOs) will be deployed to conduct the revision exercise. The enumeration process will involve BLOs visiting voters' homes to facilitate the filling of enumeration forms. The printing of these forms and the commencement of training for the BLOs are scheduled to begin on October 28, 2025. The window for submitting claims and objections will remain open until January 8.
In West Bengal, the SIR process will be carried out in three phases. The initial enumeration phase is expected to last for 30-35 days, followed by the publication of a draft electoral roll within a week. This will be succeeded by a month-long phase allowing voters to make rectifications if they have been left out of the electoral roll. Political parties are also able to raise claims and objections during this period. Subsequently, the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) will verify all submitted forms and address the claims and objections. The final electoral roll for West Bengal will be published a week after the completion of the verification process.
The Election Commission faces a significant task in West Bengal, where it will need to verify approximately 3.5 crore voters who are not on the state's 2002 SIR list within a three-month timeframe. This comes as a preparatory SIR mapping indicated a 52% match between the electoral roll published after the 2002 SIR and the roll from January 2025. According to EC officials, West Bengal has a voter base of 7.6 crore. The mapping has been completed for all districts except Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling, which together account for 40 lakh voters.
Concerns have been raised regarding the SIR exercise. Trinamool Congress MP Sagarika Ghose has described the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls as an "exclusionary and not an inclusionary" exercise, alleging that it forces citizens to undergo citizenship tests. She also accused the Election Commission of trying to "disenfranchise" and harass citizens, further claiming that the exercise is primarily aimed at targeting voters in West Bengal. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has expressed her opposition to such an exercise in West Bengal.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari had previously demanded a "thorough revision" of the voter list in West Bengal, similar to the SIR in Bihar. The BJP has also launched a campaign advocating for "No SIR, No Vote" and has submitted a list of 17 lakh "fake voters" to the EC, accusing the TMC of obstructing voter list revision ahead of the 2026 polls.
The Election Commission has stated that the revision of rolls aims to clean the voter list. To assist voters, help desks will be specifically opened in urban areas for migrant laborers and staff from other states. The Election Commission has been urged to address all pending issues on priority.
