In Bihar, a notable silence has emerged from political parties following the publication of draft electoral rolls, with not a single claim or objection being filed within the first 24 hours. This comes despite the extensive groundwork undertaken by the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the significant participation of political parties in the process.
The ECI published the draft electoral rolls for all 243 Assembly Constituencies, encompassing 90,712 polling booths across Bihar, on August 1, 2025. These rolls were then shared with all political parties by the 38 District Election Officers (DEOs) in the state. The commission also shared a detailed list of electors whose names appeared in the June 24 rolls but were missing in the new draft with political parties for cross-verification.
To ensure accuracy and facilitate participation, the ECI has taken several measures. They have enabled electors to verify their names through the official ECI portal using their EPIC numbers and file claims or objections for inclusion or deletion of names through the same portal. The ECI has also urged all voters to submit new photographs to their Booth Level Officers (BLOs) by September 1, 2025.
Political parties have also been actively involved in the process, with 1.60 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) nominated by District Presidents of 12 political parties participating on the ground. The recognized political parties appoint Booth Level Agents (BLAs) to interact with BLOs to ensure transparency and to flag any discrepancy or impurity in the electoral roll of the polling station/part concerned. Despite this, no claims or objections were filed within the initial 24-hour period. Parties including RJD, Congress, CPI(M) and CPI(ML) have nominated 1,60,813 Booth Level Agents (BLA). The RJD has 47,506 BLAs, and the Congress has 17,549 BLAs registered with the ECI for the SIR exercise.
The ECI has emphasized its commitment to maintaining a pure, healthy, and inclusive electoral roll. The commission has provided copies of the draft and final electoral rolls free of cost to recognized political parties. It has also put in place a well-defined protocol and procedure for preparing the electoral roll, following the principle of natural justice by providing reasonable opportunity to the electors and all stakeholders, particularly political parties.
While the initial 24 hours have passed without any claims or objections from political parties, the public still has one month to submit their claims and objections. The ECI has assured that no name will be removed from the draft voter list without a stated reason. Simultaneously, the ECI has launched a special campaign for the addition of the names of eligible young voters, who are attaining the age of 18 years from July 1 to October 1, 2025.
BLAs can list out the dead and shifted voters and present the list to the Designated Officers / Booth Level Officers in the prescribed format. They should give an undertaking that the information furnished by them is on the basis of verification conducted by them and they are liable for action under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 for making false declaration, if any. The Booth Level Agents will motivate the electors within the jurisdiction of the part of the electoral roll to come forward to inspect the draft roll during the period when it is displayed and file applications for correction, deletion and transposition of entries.
