Massive voter list breach? Foreign nationals with Indian IDs found in Bihar

Patna: In a major development ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, several people from Nepal, Bangladesh, and Myanmar were found in possession of Aadhaar cards, ration cards, and domicile certificates during the door-to-door verification process being carried out as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

According to sources, the irregularities were flagged by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) during household visits. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has taken serious note of the matter and announced that a detailed inquiry will be conducted between August 1 and August 30. If the allegations are found to be true, the names of such people will not be included in the final electoral roll, scheduled to be published on September 30, 2025.

80% electors have submitted enumeration forms

Meanwhile, the ECI said the voter list revision exercise is progressing swiftly. As of Saturday evening, 80.11% of electors in Bihar, approximately 6.32 crore voters, had submitted their Enumeration Forms (EFs). With the deadline for form collection set for July 25, officials expect to meet and possibly exceed their target ahead of schedule.

"With 77,895 BLOs, an additional 20,603 newly appointed BLOs on the ground, ECI is moving ahead to complete the collection of Enumeration Forms (EFs) before the stipulated time of 25th July 2025. Field-level teams, including 38 District Election Officers (DEOs), Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) across all 243 Assembly Constituencies, and 963 Assistant EROs (AEROs), are being closely monitored by the CEO for this purpose," the ECI said.

Additionally, over 1.5 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) from various political parties are also involved in the verification process to ensure no eligible voter is left out.

Volunteers support vulnerable groups

To facilitate the process for senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PwD), and other vulnerable populations, over 4 lakh volunteers have been mobilised. Special efforts are underway to ensure that Enumeration Forms reach all eligible electors, and help is being provided to those who need assistance with form-filling or document submission.

The ECI clarified that to be included in the draft electoral rolls to be published on August 1, electors must submit their forms along with eligibility documents. However, those requiring additional time can submit supporting documents separately until August 30, which is also the last date for filing claims and objections.

In another significant milestone, the ECI reported that 4.66 crore forms have already been digitised and uploaded into ECINet, the Commission’s new integrated software platform that merges 40 earlier apps into a unified system.

ANI inputs