Congress alleges 947 voters in one Bihar house; villagers fact-check
What's the story
Local authorities and the Bihar Chief Electoral Officer have provided clarifications after the Congress Party alleged that 947 voters in Nidani village, Bodh Gaya, are registered under a single house number. "In the official voter list - 947 voters live in the same house (house no. 6). Reality? Nidani has hundreds of houses and families, but the list has crammed the entire village into an imaginary house," the Congress claimed.
Verification concerns
Congress questions door-to-door verification process
In its post on X, the Congress party had also questioned the Booth Level Officer's door-to-door verification process and why actual house numbers were not included in the voter list. They alleged this omission could be a way to conceal fake voters and duplicates. Sharing the post by his party, Rahul Gandhi questioned the Election Commission, writing on X, "Look at the EC's magic. An entire village nestled in one house!"
Clarification issued
Gaya district administration shares videos of villagers
The party demanded a response from Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, saying if such an error can happen on such a large scale in Bihar, it raises questions about irregularities across India. Local authorities have since clarified that the house number in question is "notional," as houses in the area don't have actual numbers. The Gaya district administration shared videos of villagers on X, clarifying that symbolic house numbers are given when real ones aren't available.
Resident
'There are no house numbers in the village'
In one video, a resident said, "Village Nidani, Booth No. 161, here defamation is being done that 900 votes are in one house, that is completely wrong...and as far as house numbers are concerned,.. [they] don't exist in the village." Another resident said, "My name is Rinki Kumari... I have been voting before, and I am still voting. There are no house numbers in the village; my name is still on the voter list."
Twitter Post
Watch the videos here
कई गांवों में गृह संख्या आवंटित नहीं होती है, जिसके कारण वोटर रोल में सांकेतिक गृह संख्या दी जाती है। जिन मतदाताओं का उल्लेख किया गया है, सभी गांव में मौजूद हैं, सही वोटर हैं। निदानी गांव के 161 बूथ संख्या के वोटर स्वयं स्थिति स्पष्ट कर रहे हैं।@CEOBihar @ECISVEEP pic.twitter.com/7w7GLuFyDl
— District Magistrate, Gaya (@gaya_dm) August 28, 2025
Official explanation
What is a notional house number?
The Bihar Chief Electoral Officer's office explained that a "Notional House Number" is given when there isn't an actual house number available. In many villages, slums or temporary settlements don't have permanent house numbers, so the Booth Level Officer assigns a serial number for convenience in listing voters, it said. "This number is only for convenience in listing and to record voters...It is used for voter identification and to prepare the voter list in an orderly manner," it explained.