New Delhi, Jan 21: Amid opposition parties raising concerns over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on Wednesday said that maintaining a “pure” voters’ list is fundamental to strengthening democracy.
Speaking at the inaugural session of the International Conference on Democracy and Election Management (IICDEM-2026), the CEC said that not a single complaint was received regarding wrongful inclusion or exclusion of voters during the electoral roll revision exercise carried out in Bihar last year.
He further pointed out that no repoll was required during the two-phase Bihar Assembly elections across nearly one lakh polling stations, underscoring the efficiency and credibility of the electoral process.
“A pure electoral roll, which includes every eligible voter as per law, is essential for strengthening democracy. All elections conducted on the basis of such rolls gain greater credibility,” Kumar said.
According to him, the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar was conducted under intense public scrutiny, and the local election machinery demonstrated a high level of efficiency, from roll purification to election conduct.
Opposition parties have accused the BJP led government and the Election Commission of using the SIR exercise to influence electoral outcomes. However, both the government and the poll body have strongly denied these allegations.
Phase II of the SIR began on November 4 last year in several states and Union Territories, including Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. A separate special revision is currently underway in Assam.
The CEC noted that the last SIR conducted in states serves as the cut-off date for revisions, similar to how the 2003 voter list was used for Bihar’s intensive revision. Most states last carried out such an exercise between 2002 and 2004.
The primary objective of the SIR, officials said, is to identify and remove foreign illegal migrants from electoral rolls by verifying place of birth, an exercise that has gained significance amid crackdowns on illegal migration from countries such as Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Nearly 100 delegates from around 70 countries are participating in IICDEM-2026, making it the largest international conference ever hosted by India in the field of democracy and election management.