Bihar elections: Congress flags 3 lakh extra voters; ECI explains revised figures

The Congress party has raised questions over a perceived discrepancy in Bihar’s electoral data, following its dismal performance in the state assembly elections declared on Friday. In a Facebook post, the party highlighted that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, in a statement on October 6, had reported 7.42 crore registered voters, whereas the official Election Commission press release post-poll cited 7.45 crore.

The Congress demanded clarification on “how an additional three lakh electors were added” to the rolls during the election process.

Election Commission’s take

The Election Commission of India (ECI) countered the claim on Saturday, explaining that the 7.42 crore figure referred to data available after the final publication of the electoral rolls on September 30. The increase of 3 lakh voters occurred due to election rules allowing eligible citizens to apply for inclusion in the rolls even after polling is announced, up to 10 days before the last date for filing nominations in each phase.

“All valid applications received from October 1 until 10 days prior to the last nomination date were verified, and eligible voters were added to ensure no qualified citizen was denied the right to vote,” the ECI was quoted as saying in a national daily. The revised number of 7.45 crore was reported in the post-poll press release.

Bihar election outcome

The Congress’ allegations come in the wake of its poor showing in the Bihar assembly elections. The party managed to win only six seats as part of the Mahagathbandhan alliance.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured a commanding victory, capturing 202 of the 243 seats. The Bharatiya Janata Party emerged as the single-largest party with 89 wins out of 101 contested constituencies, while its ally, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), won 85 seats.

Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) also performed strongly, claiming 19 of its 29 contested seats. Meanwhile, Tejashwi Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal suffered a steep decline, securing just 25 seats compared to 75 in 2020.