EC released draft list of SIR in West Bengal, more than 58 lakh names removed from voter list

West Bengal: The Election Commission has released the draft voter list for West Bengal after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process. The list marks the conclusion of a controversial months-long SIR campaign in the state, which included the migration of illegal Bangladeshis and the deaths of several booth-level officers (BLOs). Voter names were checked, verified and updated during the SIR process, resulting in widespread changes to Bengal’s voting lists.

Possible reduction of voter names
Although the Election Commission has not released a separate list of removed voters, but according to the data, about 58 lakh names have been removed from the voter list of Bengal. The special observer said that a total of 58,17,851 forms remained “uncollected”. The reason given was that the voters were either absent from their registered address, were dead, or their entries were duplicates. The names of such voters will be temporarily removed from the draft list. Of these names, 24 lakh names have been marked as dead, 19 lakh transferred, 12 lakh missing and 1.3 lakh as duplicate.

Now the claim-objection phase has started
With the release of the draft voter list, the complex process of claims and objections has started. Voters can check their information, lodge objection if any error is found or name has been removed. Under this process, the voter list will be finalized through claims, objections and hearing.

Second step of SIR process
The second phase of the SIR exercise, which will be conducted in three phases, will continue till February 2026. During this period, verification, checking and updating of voter names will continue. The objective of the Election Commission is to ensure that the final voter list is completely accurate and fair. With the release of the draft voter list of SIR in West Bengal, election preparations in the state have reached a new turn. The process of curtailment of names of lakhs of voters, processing of claims and objections, and preparation of the final list will play an important role in making the electoral process of the state transparent and systematic.