5L Bengal voters risk deletion after skipping SIR hearings
What's the story
In West Bengal, around five lakh voters have skipped hearings under the Special Summary Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. This could lead to their names being deleted from the final voter list. The Election Commission of India (ECI) had earlier announced that the hearing process would end on Saturday. However, the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Manoj Kumar Agarwal, has ordered officials to continue hearings in districts where they remain incomplete.
Extension proposal
Extension of hearing date suggested
Agarwal has directed district electoral officers-district magistrates (DEO-cum-DMs) to share data on pending hearings. He has also suggested extending the hearing date till February 14, which would push the publication of the final list to February 21. Nearly 20 of West Bengal's 294 Assembly constituencies are yet to complete their hearings, including those in North and South 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Malda, and Darjeeling districts.
Extension requests
Notices have been sent out
District administrations in South and North 24 Parganas and Malda have reportedly sought an extension of the hearing schedule. A senior ECI official said all notices have been sent out, with February 7 being the last date for hearings. If extended, the final electoral roll's publication date will also be pushed back accordingly. The SIR hearings began on December 27, with a slow start, leading to more officers and centers being added to increase daily hearings.
Voter deletions
In 1st phase, 58 lakh voters deleted
In the first phase of the SIR, at least 58 lakh voters were deleted from the draft roll published by the ECI on December 16. According to the CEO's office, 92.40% of names were retained in this draft roll. As of October 27, before starting the SIR exercise, a total of 7,66,37,529 electors were enrolled in West Bengal's voter list.
Deletion reasons
Draft roll published on October 27
Out of these, 7,08,16,630 names were on the draft voters' list, and 58,20,899 were deleted for being absent or having shifted. Among the deletions were 24.16 lakh deceased electors and 32.65 lakh who had shifted or were absent. The CEO's office also noted that some electors had multiple enrollments at different places, resulting in their deletion from the voter list.