IndiaPosted at: Sep 26 2026 5:33PM


ECI eases SIR verification process, extends claims deadline in Delhi and Maharashtra

New Delhi, Sep 26 (UNI) The Election Commission of India on Saturday announced a series of measures to simplify the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, including home visits by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) for voters who have been served notices over unmapped records or logical discrepancies, while extending the deadline for filing claims and objections in Delhi and Maharashtra.
At a meeting held at 3 pm on Saturday, the full Commission decided that persons who have received notices during the SIR process would not ordinarily be required to appear personally before the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO). Instead, BLOs would visit their homes to collect the required documents and upload them on the ECINet system for consideration by the ERO.
The Commission said hearings would be held only in exceptional circumstances as determined by the ERO and, preferably, through online mode. It also allowed any adult member of a family to attend such a hearing on behalf of an elector if authorised by the elector, while directing that facilities for online hearings be strengthened. The decisions come amid continuing political and public debate over the SIR exercise and concerns about the accessibility of the verification process for vulnerable sections of the electorate.
The Commission also directed District Election Officers (DEOs) to establish adequate help desks and organise special camps, according to local requirements, for people living in night shelters, labourers, poor and homeless persons and other voters who may face difficulties in participating in the revision exercise. In another significant decision, the Commission said the declaration attached to Form 6 for the SIR process had been upheld by the Supreme Court, while clarifying that during periods outside SIR, the forms prescribed under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, would continue to be used.
The Supreme Court's May 27, 2026 judgment examined the statutory framework governing preparation and revision of electoral rolls, including the Election Commission's power to direct a special revision under Section 21 of the Representation of the People Act.
Addressing concerns relating to the Commission's digital systems, the ECI said field officers have role-based access to ECINet in accordance with their statutory powers. It announced that a committee headed by a Senior Deputy Election Commissioner and including an independent expert from an IIT or IIIT would review the ECINet system to ensure that it complies with the relevant Acts and Rules and submit its report to the Commission.
The Commission said several upgrades had already been made to the portal on the basis of inputs received from State Chief Electoral Officers over the past few months and added that any further flexibility required by field officers would be operationalised. It also decided that all new initiatives relating to IT modules and portals would henceforth be discussed in the Committee of Officers before being placed before the Commission for approval.
The ECI further announced that, following a request from the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi, the deadline for filing claims and objections in the national capital had been extended to October 30, 2026, while the deadline for disposal of notices and claims and objections was extended to November 30.
In Maharashtra, the deadline for filing claims and objections was extended to October 12, with disposal to be completed by November 10. The Commission said the extensions had been granted in response to requests from the respective State election authorities. The ECI also announced a set of internal administrative measures, saying that agendas for all Commission meetings would be circulated in advance and minutes would be issued.
Annual Performance Appraisal Reports of all officers would be completed within the stipulated deadline of December 31 every year, approval of the Commission would be required for foreign trips by its officers, and all directions issued by the Commissioners to officers would have to be "meticulously complied with".
The Commission said SIR had already been completed in 20 States and union Territories, including Bihar and West Bengal. It clarified that anyone whose name had been left out during the SIR or subsequently, including young and first-time voters, could apply to the concerned ERO for inclusion in the electoral rolls through the process of continuous updation.
Chief Electoral Officers have been directed to facilitate such applications, while CEOs, DEOs and EROs have been instructed to immediately launch a special drive to enrol such electors.
The Commission also sought to put its recent decisions and internal functioning in context, reiterating that a letter addressed to the Cabinet Secretary was not related to any policy matter of the Commission or its IT division but concerned the functioning of an officer on deputation to the ECI. It said work-reallocation orders issued by the officer concerned were not actually implemented after directions from two Commissioners and that oversight of the IT division by the Deputy Election Commissioner had never been withdrawn. Responding to wider questions surrounding the SIR process, the ECI said the order issued on June 24, 2025, for a Special Intensive Revision across all States and union Territories, beginning with Bihar and subsequently extending to West Bengal and 30 other States and union Territories, had been approved unanimously by the Commission. It further said the Supreme Court had upheld the SIR order in its May 27, 2026 order.
The Commission said the SIR schedules for 12 States and union Territories issued on October 27, 2025, and for another 19 States and union Territories issued on May 14, 2026, had also received unanimous approval of the Commission. "The final figure of number of electors will be known only after final publication in the remaining 12 states of Phase-III," the ECI said.
The Commission also highlighted action taken in Goa to reach voters who had been left out of the revision exercise. It said the Chief Electoral Officer of Goa had directed the concerned BLOs to conduct house-to-house visits to such voters and collect their forms, adding that 81 of the 97 voters identified had already filled Form 6 for inclusion in the electoral rolls.
The ECI's latest measures are significant as the Commission continues the phased SIR exercise, which involves verification and updating of electoral rolls and has generated sustained political debate over documentation, voter inclusion and the procedures followed by election officials. The Commission, for its part, has repeatedly maintained that the exercise is aimed at ensuring accurate electoral rolls and has emphasised that eligible citizens whose names are missing can seek inclusion through the prescribed procedures.
The ECI's latest press note, issued on Saturday with the approval of the full Commission, seeks to place greater emphasis on doorstep assistance, online hearings, special camps for vulnerable voters and additional time for claims and objections while also announcing a review of its digital systems and strengthening of internal administrative procedures. The Commission's official voter services platform also provides facilities for voter registration and modification of electoral details, including online applications for eligible citizens. UNI SKA AAB
Tags: #ECI eases SIR verification process# extends claims deadline in Delhi and Maharashtra
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