Uncommon 'intensive' revision in Bihar 4 months earlier than polls

New Delhi: The Election Fee’s ‘Particular Intensive Revision’ of Bihar’s electoral rolls has sparked a serious political debate. Nevertheless, this isn’t the primary time that the ballot panel has ordered an ‘intensive’ revision of electoral rolls — at the very least 9 such revisions have been held from 1952 to 2004, a number of of which got here with comparable house-to-house verification and even a ‘de novo’ electoral roll in some instances. Nevertheless, the EC has seldom ordered a full state intensive revision in a state 4-6 months forward of meeting elections, as is the case with Bihar.

Issue the final such cases: In June 2004, ECI ordered ‘Intensive Revision of Electoral Rolls‘ in seven northeastern states and J&Ok.

Alongside, it ordered a ‘particular abstract revision‘ in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, West Bengal, and Union Territories of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Daman & Diu, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, NCT of Delhi, Lakshadweep and Pondicherry.Previous to that, ‘intensive revision’ of the electoral rolls was performed in 20 different states/UTs, together with Bihar, in two phases throughout 2002 and 2003, besides the northeastern states and J&Ok.

BIHAR 2025- A singular case
The 2025 SIR in Bihar is completely different on a number of counts. Whereas an ‘intensive’ revision largely includes a ‘de novo’ train, drawing up a recent electoral roll from the scratch, the Bihar SIR is utilizing the 2002-03 electoral roll as a base to construct upon. On the similar time, it includes a brand new pre-printed enumeration kind included within the standard house-to-house verification format and doc submission, related to an ‘intensive’ revision. It’s, additionally, very completely different from earlier intensive revision workout routines by way of timing.

EC has seldom ordered a full state and full-scale intensive revision in a state 4-6 months forward of scheduled meeting elections, as is the case with Bihar. Bihar noticed its final intensive revision in 2002, an excellent three years away from the meeting polls held in October 2005.

Equally, when the EC, on June 29, 2004 introduced an intensive roll revision in eight states, it selected to depart out two states which have been pending an identical intensive roll revision. These have been Arunachal Pradesh & Maharashtra the place meeting polls have been due in October 2004.

“In Arunachal Pradesh and Maharashtra, normal elections to the assemblies are to be held within the latter half of 2004. Due to this fact, the programme in these two states shall be introduced after the completion of the elections,” the EC press be aware on 29.06.2004 learn.

As a substitute, a ‘particular abstract revision of rolls’ was introduced for Maharashtra forward of the October 2024 meeting polls with house-to-house enumeration, as per the September-December 2004 EC e-newsletter.

The EC has, in reality, typically performed ‘intensive’ revision in sure areas of a state. In Tamil Nadu- after inquiry reviews indicated ‘shortcomings within the conduct of various ranges of election officers on the time of intensive revision of electoral rolls in 2002’- the ballot panel on October 19, 2004 ordered a ‘particular revision of intensive nature with house-to-house enumeration’ in six municipal company areas throughout 33 constituencies, spanning elements of Chennai, Salem, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Madurai, and Tirunelveli.

Within the aftermath of Gujarat riots, the ECI on August 16,2002, introduced a repeat of the 2002 ‘particular revision of intensive nature’.