Bihar SIR ground report: BLOs speak on accusations, EC targets, challenges

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, which is the process of preparing a new voter list as directed by the Election Commission (EC), is nearing its completion.

The Federal Desh team visited a booth in Rajiv Nagar, Patna, and met several BLOs (Booth Level Officers). These individuals had been visiting the homes of voters who had not yet filled out the Enumeration Forms. They were also present to facilitate voters in contacting them.

BLOs given targets

The team met a BLO named Indu Upadhyay. She explained that all BLOs have been given targets according to their booths. She mentioned that the conditions are becoming difficult as they visit voters’ homes in hot weather conditions.

Also read: Chaos rules Bihar SIR; Opposition poll boycott in the offing? Capital Beat

For those whose homes are locked, they call them to the school to fill out the forms. Upadhyay said, "We are accused of not going to the booths. But when we call people to the booths, they do not come themselves." She added, "It is wrong to accuse us; we are performing our duty to the public." Upadhyay also showed the discrepancies in the voters’ list, such as a voter named Uday Rai, who has passed away, but whose photo is of a woman, while another woman voter name has a man's picture.

Seema Kumari is also working as a BLO. When the team asked her about the progress of the SIR, she said, "The difficulty is that people are not providing documents along with the forms, while it is essential to attach documents." She said that no documents are being taken from those whose names are on the 2003 voter list. For those without any documents, they take their Aadhaar card as it is optional, and they even accept PAN cards.

What about voters living outside Bihar?

The big question is how voters residing outside Bihar will participate in the SIR? Another BLO, Rinki, who is a teacher, informed our team that relatives or neighbours send messages to those living outside Bihar. Those who are outside are sending their documents to us. Rinki mentioned that it would have been better if Aadhaar card was also recognised in the SIR, as everyone has it. She added that every BLO is under pressure to meet distribution and collection targets.

Also read: Bihar SIR: As EC digs in heels and Tejashwi threatens poll boycott, all eyes on SC

A BLO named Sanjay Kumar Singh said, "The voters we meet are providing us with the documents they have, and we are accepting them. Although Aadhaar has been rejected, we are still taking it. The Supreme Court has also suggested taking Aadhaar, but the commission has not yet issued such an order." He added, "We do not have the authority to filter anyone; it will be decided by the higher authorities. We are also collecting documents from those who are outside and uploading them." He stated that they have been instructed that no voter should be left out.

EC releases voter numbers

Bihar’s Assembly elections will be held in November. Just three months before the elections, the SIR work is being conducted in the state. The special intensive revision, which started on June 25, will conclude today (July 26).

Also read: Bihar SIR: EC defends voter deletions amid SC scrutiny; what next?

Before starting the special intensive revision, the Election Commission had stated that there are 78,969,844 (nearly 7.90 crore) voters in Bihar, and on July 25, the commission reported that it had successfully reached 99.8 per cent of the voters.

The EC stated that it has received Enumeration Forms from 7.23 crore voters, and these have been uploaded. According to the commission, 22 lakh voters have passed away, 35 lakh voters have permanently migrated, 700,000 are registered in multiple places, and 120,000 could not be traced. This means that a total of 65.2 lakh voters are on the verge of being removed from the special intensive revision list.

The figures declared by the EC have led to a controversy, leading to protests by Opposition parties in both Parliament and the Bihar Assembly. Now, all eyes are on the Supreme Court hearing scheduled for July 28 regarding the SIR.

(This article was originally published in The Federal Desh)