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New Delhi: Around 65 lakh names have been removed from the voter list as Election Commission on Sunday released the final figures for the first phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in poll-bound Bihar. The state has now 7.24 crore voters. The removed names include deceased individuals, displaced persons, and voters living abroad.
According to the EC, as of 24 June 2025, Bihar had 7.89 crore registered voters. Out of these, over 7.24 crore voters submitted their enumeration forms. The final figure for the first phase of SIR stands at 7.24 crore. The 65 lakh voters whose names were removed include: 22 lakh deceased, 36 lakh, and seven lakh who have permanently migrated elsewhere.
The EC has credited the successful completion of the first phase of SIR to the chief electoral officer of Bihar, the district election officers of all 38 districts, 243 electoral registration officers (EROs), 2,976 assistant EROs (AEROs), booth level officers (BLOs) at 77,895 polling stations, lakhs of volunteers, and local representatives of 12 major political parties, including 1.60 lakh booth level agents (BLAs). According to the EC data, the number of BLAs saw a growth of over 16 per cent during the SIR period.
The SIR process in Bihar began on June 24, 2025, with the aim of removing names of deceased, relocated, or duplicate voters from the electoral rolls, and including eligible voters. As part of the process, BLOs and BLAs visited households to collect enumeration forms. By July 25, the first phase of this exercise had been almost entirely completed, covering 99.8 per cent of voters.
The Election Commission has announced that from August 1 to September 1, 2025, eligible voters whose names were left out will have the opportunity to be included in the draft electoral roll. Voters found registered in multiple locations will be retained in only one.
The EC has announced that the campaign, which began in Bihar, will now be rolled out nationwide, details for the same will be announced at a later date.
However, the SIR process in Bihar has sparked major political controversy with opposition parties including the RJD and Congress claim that the process is a conspiracy aimed at disenfranchising the poor, Dalits, backward classes, and minorities. They have described it as a "backdoor NRC". Opposition leaders argue that many families lack documents such as birth certificates. In Bihar, only 2.8 per cent of people reportedly have birth certificates from 2001–2005, which puts lakhs at risk of being removed from the voter list.
Leader of opposition in Bihar assembly and RJD leader, Tejashwi Yadav, has alleged that this process is being carried out to benefit the NDA. He has also threatened to boycott the upcoming elections. Bihar is scheduled to go to polls later this year and the opposition is gearing up to take on the ruling NDA by raising the issues of disenfranchisement and rising crime in the state.
