Alarming scale of duplicate entries

According to Mid-Day, the SEC’s scrutiny shows that 4.33 lakh voters appear more than once in the rolls published last week. Multiple entries for the same individual range from two to an astonishing 103 repetitions, taking the total number of duplicate enrolments to 11,01,505.

The Commission attributes these anomalies to printing mistakes, migration, and failure to delete names of deceased voters. Booth-level staff have been instructed to conduct door-to-door verification, collect forms, and secure undertakings to ensure each citizen appears once and only once on the list.

A senior SEC official acknowledged, as per The New Indian Express, that the civic elections — mandated by the Supreme Court to be completed by January 31, 2026 — could face minor delays. Depending on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) progress on correcting the rolls, polls may be held by late January or pushed to early February.

Opposition-held wards show highest duplicate counts

Four of the five wards with the highest number of duplicate entries are from areas formerly represented by Opposition corporators, particularly from Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Nationalist Congress Party (SP). Two such wards fall within the Worli Assembly constituency, represented by Aaditya Thackeray.

The top five wards with duplicate voters are:

• Ward 199 (Worli) – 8,207 duplicates
• Ward 131 (Ghatkopar) – 7,741
• Ward 203 (Parel–Lalbaug) – 7,624
• Ward 205 (Kalachowki) – 7,585
• Ward 194 (Century Mill) – 7,584

As reported by TNIE, a senior BMC official emphasised that the “11 lakh figure” refers not to individuals but repeated entries, and that a citywide clean-up drive is ongoing. The rectification process, supervised by 25 Assistant Municipal Commissioners designated as nodal officers, will run from November 27 to December 5.

Aaditya Thackeray escalates charge of manipulation, flags “millions” of repeated entries

On November 24, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray met senior SEC officials to protest the integrity of the voter roll revision. He also submitted a formal letter to the Chief Electoral Officer.

According to the Mid-Day report, Thackeray told the media that citizens were “desperately waiting” to vote but were confronted with arbitrary delays and unexplained irregularities. The draft list — initially due on November 7 and then on November 14 — was eventually released only on November 20, which he termed a “deliberate strategy” by the government to influence upcoming local body elections.

He alleged that government-held wards witnessed minimal or no changes, while Opposition strongholds saw “disproportionate and suspicious restructuring.”

Thackeray also questioned why the list’s summary data did not match its detailed entries, and criticised the roll for not being machine-readable.

In a post on X, he described the draft as “absolutely disgraceful and unpardonable”, demanding immediate remedial action from the SEC.

Our exposé on the corrupt practices of the election commission and the vote fraud in millions has led the the election commission giving us a week more to further find the vote chori.

Our exercise is not to only speak about it or only expose it, we expect corrective action on…

— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) November 26, 2025

Key discrepancies highlighted by Aaditya Thackeray

In a detailed public note on X, Thackeray alleged:

• Over a million duplicated entries, with some voters appearing up to seven times
• 26,319 households showing more than 10 registered voters each
• Hundreds of addresses listing over 1,000 voters
• These suspicious entries, totalling more than 8,32,000, amount to “fraud, not error”
• Nearly 7 lakh voters with no house numbers or usable addresses

He warned that such patterns hinted at systematic manipulation, insisting that “one person must have only one vote.”

His demands to the SEC included:

• Extending the suggestion-objection window from 7 to 21 days
• Allowing bulk objections by political parties
• Deploying full Commission manpower to identify possible fraud

This afternoon, we called on the State Election Commission pointing out the absolutely disgraceful and unpardonable chaos in the draft electoral roll for the BMC.

We have demanded:
1) 21 days for suggestion/ objections, instead of 7 days
2) The Election Commission accept our… pic.twitter.com/u1pycrGLCB

— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) November 24, 2025

Growing anxiety over ‘elected unopposed’ trend in local elections

A parallel controversy has emerged over the sharp increase in candidates being declared elected unopposed, raising serious concerns about coercion and misuse of political influence.

One prominent example came from Angar municipal corporation, where:

• An NCP candidate’s nomination was abruptly declared invalid
• The daughter-in-law of a leader who recently switched from NCP to the BJP was declared elected unopposed

According to Times of India, BJP state president Ravindra Chavan then publicly announced that the party had already secured around 100 seats even before voting, triggering backlash from Opposition parties. They accused the BJP of pressuring rival candidates into withdrawing.

Supriya Sule flags “deeply worrying” pattern

As reported by TOI, NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule has written to SEC Chief Dinesh Waghmare expressing grave concern about this trend. She said Maharashtra has a long tradition of robust local democracy, rooted in the legacy of Yashwantrao Chavan, which is being undermined.

Her letter states:

• Capable candidates are being discouraged from filing nominations
• This climate is undemocratic, weakens local self-government, and violates the spirit of decentralised democracy
• In areas with no alternative candidates, citizens are effectively denied choice
• The SEC must conduct serious investigations wherever allegations of pressure or intimidation arise

Congress also seeks extension, flags ward-wise discrepancies

Following similar moves by Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray, according to TOI, the Maharashtra Congress has written to the SEC demanding a 15-day extension for filing objections to the BMC draft rolls.

In their letter,

• State president Harshavardhan Sapkal,
• CLP leader Vijay Wadettiwar, and
• MLC group leader Satej Patil,

stated that in several municipal areas, draft rolls were not properly divided ward-wise, and many names were erroneously shifted to other localities.

Related:

The Deadly Deadline: “I Can’t Do This Anymore”—India’s electoral revision turns into a graveyard for BLOs/teachers

SIR exercise leaves trail of suicide across states as BLOs buckle under pressure and citizens panic over citizenship

Haunted by NRC fears, 57-year-old West Bengal man dies by suicide; Mamata blames BJP for turning democracy into a “theatre of fear”

Pregnant woman deported despite parents on 2002 SIR rolls, another homemaker commits suicide

The post Massive duplicate entries in Mumbai voter rolls trigger political uproar; opposition flags “fraudulent patterns” and pressures SEC for action appeared first on SabrangIndia.

A strong votary of preservation of data integrity and security, Madhav Deshpande has explained here how the entire electronic election cycle is ‘compromised by compromised data.’ He also urged the voters and citizens must not forget the obfuscation introduced by the “percentage” voting  instead of vote counts.

Diagram 1: Explaining Data

In the detailed and creative presentation, Deshpande explained that applying a “manual lock, key, to seal an electronic process” is ineffective as is the misplaced discourse on ‘whether or not the machine can ever go wrong or about “proving” if the “machine” is infallible.’ The focus of electors, citizens groups and the media –as also all political parties who are stake holders – should be about proving data integrity. Now, proving integrity means proving that data has remained unchanged across its entire path. In our voting process, the Voting Data Path is across the Ballot Unit (BU), Counting Unit (CU), the VVPAT and back at the CU. For complete Data Integrity, says Deshpande, it must be electronically proved that the data in BU (button presses) is identical to data in CU (both copies), as data in VVPAT. Therefore, since the protection of secrecy of the Vote is paramount, each successive data element (vote) must not be disclosed. Hence, a progressive checksum or hashsum (like CRC or MD5 or MD6) must be taken in every BU, CU and VVPAT, printed and handed over to candidates at the end of the day, polling day. FORM 17 was for paper ballot, it serves little purpose now. Now, a Checksum/ Hashsum is needed for electronic ballot. Hence, the Checksum must be again generated before counting and tallied with the EoD checksum to prove that the data is unchanged from the end of polling.

Diagram 2: Data Integrity

No paring of electronic devices –How else do we understand that the existing EVS (electronic voting system) is compromised? How do we understand also that the Data Integrity is compromised, which in turn means that every Voter’s Vote, the Secrecy and Integrity of every Ballot is compromised?

Above Deshpande has explained how their must be an electronic safety lock,  the Checksum/hashsum at every stage of the Voting Process, evidence of which must be given to every candidate at close of Voting, Start of Counting.

Now, he explains how more needs to happen. Diagram 3 (below) explains how  to combat the corrosive phenomenon of fake voters, duplicate voters and ghost voters with fake addresses the system needs to use an Aadhaar kind of Biometrics and Address database with an INDEPENDENT PC before letting the voter inside the polling booth premises. Second, the VVPAT unit, CU (Counting Unit) and Ballot Unit (BU) need to be ‘paired’. If the earlier recommended procedure of ‘electronic locking’ (checksum/hashsum) is applied and thereafter, the units are ‘paired’ the system becomes foolproof. Without this happening, between Voting Day and Counting Day,  the CU can be easily swapped: original CU can be replaced by another CU with stuffed votes. Worse, Votes can be “counted” from 2 different memory stores for results and then for verification.

Diagram 3:

Uniqueness is intrinsic to Freedom

In the words of expert Madhav Deshpande himself, “Among the many things that freedom entails, equality and uniqueness are two crucial and important aspects.

When one has a duplicate, one’s uniqueness is lost. Say there is a duplicate voter ID card for me. And let us say there are only 2 parties in India. I vote for BJP, while the other votes for Congress. Now, my vote makes no impact, as both parties get 1 vote in my name. In other words, my democratic value is reduced to 0. I am totally marginalized. In other words, I don’t matter anymore. This is not just scary, it is demeaning to each one of us.

Madhav Deshpande appeals, “Each one of us who values freedom must speak up against this marginalization. This is not about any political party.

If you value freedom, you will be up in arms against this.

Related:

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99.8% of 65 lakh voter deletions go unchallenged on 13th day of objection period

Vote for Democracy: Statistical, legal and procedural irregularities dot Bihar’s controversial SIR process

The post EXCLUSIVE: Solid empirical evidence of tampering in Voter’s List mustn’t let us forget EVM Manipulations: Computer Expert Madhav Deshpande appeared first on SabrangIndia.

In response to this contentious backdrop, a key aspect of the newly relaxed rules involves the utilisation of the 2003 Bihar electoral rolls, which comprise 4.96 crore electors. The ECI has now stated that individuals born after 1987 will not be required to provide proof of their parents’ birth if their names, or their parents’ names, appear on these 2003 rolls. This provision is designed to streamline the verification process and alleviate the documentation burden for a significant portion of the electorate.

According to ECI, this provision is expected to simplify the process for approximately 60% of the state’s total electorate. These electors can simply verify their details against the 2003 rolls and submit a filled Enumeration Form. This accessibility of the 2003 data is intended to expedite the revision process for both electors and Booth Level Officers (BLOs).

Using 2003 rolls when names are not listed

The ECI has further clarified that even if an elector’s name is not present in the 2003 Bihar Electoral Roll, they can still use an extract from the 2003 Electoral Roll to substantiate details for their mother or father. In such instances, no other corroborating documents for their parents would be required; the relevant extract or details from the 2003 electoral roll would suffice. However, these electors would still be required to submit their own documents along with the filled Enumeration Form.

The mandate and dynamics of electoral roll revisions

According to ECI, the revision of electoral rolls is a fundamental and statutory exercise, mandated by Section 21(2)(a) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and Rule 25 of the Registration of Elector Rules, 1960. The ECI has routinely conducted both annual intensive and summary revisions for 75 years. This ongoing process is essential because electoral rolls are dynamic, constantly changing due to factors such as deaths, internal migration (for reasons like occupation, education, or marriage), and the addition of new voters who reach the age of 18. The current SIR in Bihar aligns with this continuous effort to maintain accurate and current voter records.

In line with these principles, ECI instructions dated June 24, 2025, stipulate that Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs), District Election Officers (DEOs), and Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) must make the Electoral Rolls with a qualifying date of January 1, 2003, freely available to all BLOs in hard copy. Additionally, these rolls are to be accessible online on the ECI’s website for public download and use as documentary evidence during the submission of Enumeration Forms. The ECI’s press note dated June 30, 2025, provides further details.

The ECI’s press noted dated June 30, 2025 can be read here

Commencement and operational aspects of SIR in Bihar

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) officially began in Bihar, as the ECI stated on June 28, 2025, with reports indicating the participation of various political parties. To manage this extensive undertaking, the ECI has deployed 77,895 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and is in the process of appointing nearly 20,603 more for new polling stations.

According to ECI’s press note (No. ECI/PN/236/2025), over one lakh volunteers are expected to assist electors, with a focus on older individuals, the sick, Persons with Disabilities (PwD), and other vulnerable groups. Recognised National and State Political Parties registered with the ECI have appointed 1,54,977 Booth Level Agents (BLAs, with scope for more appointments). The distribution of new Enumeration Forms (EF) has commenced door-to-door across all 243 Assembly Constituencies of Bihar for the existing 7,89,69,844 electors. Online submission of these forms is also enabled. Of the current electorate, 4.96 crore individuals whose names were on the 2003 electoral roll’s last intensive revision need only verify their details, fill the Enumeration Form, and submit it.

Divisional Commissioners and District Magistrates are engaging BLOs full-time for the SIR, and SMS notifications are being sent to 5,74,07,022 registered mobile numbers in Bihar to raise awareness.

Past revisions and political discourse

The Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decision to conduct an Intensive Revision in Bihar, which effectively entails preparing fresh electoral rolls, has ignited considerable political discussion. This initiative has drawn criticism, with the Congress party voicing concerns about the potential for deliberate voter exclusion facilitated by state machinery.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also weighed in, characterising the move as “more dangerous than NRC (National Register of Citizens)” and suggesting that her state, scheduled for elections next year, could be the actual underlying objective. Such reactions underscore the heightened political sensitivities frequently associated with electoral roll revisions, particularly in states approaching elections.

The Congress, through its empowered action group of leaders and experts (EAGLE), has formally opposed the revision exercise, asserting that it poses a risk of wilful voter exclusion.

In a statement shared by AICC General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal on ‘X’, the party declared its opposition to what it termed the “devious Special Intensive Revision exercise ordered by the ECI for Bihar.” The Congress leaders further indicated that by undertaking such a revision in Bihar and other states, the ECI implicitly acknowledges existing issues with India’s electoral rolls.

Challenges to ECI’s authority and historical precedent

The ECI’s current revision in Bihar has drawn sharp criticism regarding its legal premise and scope. Notably, senior social activist Dr. Pyare Lal Garg has questioned the ECI’s move, contending that it “usurps the powers to test ‘Indian citizenship’,” a function he asserts does not lie with the ECI. Dr. Garg has stated that the latest decision by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar is not only “unlawful and hasty” but also “violates the Indian Constitution and the Representation of Peoples Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.”

Historical records show intensive revisions were conducted in 1952-56, 1957, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1983-84, 1987-89, 1992, 1993, 1995, 2002, 2003, and 2004. These were however carried out, over the time and duration required and available under law, following due process under both the RPA Act 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.

Related:

Bihar: Sinister move by ECI as ‘intensive’ revision of electoral roles set to exclude vast majority of legitimate voters

Who orchestrated APPs failures, the FM and her ex-FS or the ECI?

VFD’s draft reports points to “electoral manipulation and irregularities” in Haryana and J&K 2024 assembly elections

The post Bihar 2025 Election: EC drops parental birth document requirement for 4.96 crore electors and their children in Bihar appeared first on SabrangIndia.

 
Raipur:  After the capital city of Raipur, the Bilaspur constituency is the most important seat in the state. Usually, there are two lakh voters registered here. To estimate the ongoing the sentiment with regards to the election, we went to many bylanes and areas to understand people’s views. Eight of 10 people said that the person who has been running the state for the last 15 years on behalf of the ruling party needs to go because they have ruined the city. Whatever happens, we will not vote for him. Many are convinced that he is going to lose. Then suddenly, only the day of the election, 35,000 people in the constituency find out that their names have been removed from the voter list. Which means that 35,000 votes that could have gone to the oppositions, almost 17.5 per cent people, were rendered useless in one stroke.
 
The second phase of the polls where 72 seats in 19 districts were being contested ended on Nov 20. A total of 1079 candidates including 119 women were included in this phase. According to the Election Commission, 71.93 per cent of the people voted in the second phase. In the first phase on Nov 12, the voting percentage of 18 seats in the Naxal affected areas was 76.42 per cent. The total combined voting percentage of the state was 74.17. On Tuesday, about 1.54 crore people (77.53 lakh male voters, 76.46 lakh female voters and 877 transgender voters) exercised their voting rights.
 
Bilaspur: The Kingmaker
Taking stock of the constituencies that are being contested, Bilaspur is Chattisgarh’s biggest division with 24 seats in its kitty. Out of which five are reserved for Scheduled Tribes and four for Scheduled Castes. Whoever takes an edge in this division, is said to form the government.
 
Bilaspur is also the district headquarter and the High Court of Chhattisgarh is also located here. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President Amit Shah, Congress President Rahul Gandhi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BSP supremo Mayawati, Aam Aadmi Party’s Sanjay Singh and Gopal Rai have used all their power in this division to attract voters.
 
Bilaspur is a crucial seat for BJP as Amar Agarwal from the party has been the MLA of this region for the last 15 years. Talking about ground realities, his defeat was considered certain, and many placed bets that Congress candidate Shailesh Pandey will be victorious.
 
Over the years, due to the poor sewage work, Bilaspur was overtaken by dust and dirt. People were either dying by falling in pits or by contracting diseases. The anger reached disproportionate heights and the MLA got wind of the disappointment. He must have wanted to end this disgrace. A video of an envelope containing an electoral slip with his photo and a Rs.500 note was seen. (This could also be a prank.)

The city of Bilaspur has become nothing but dug roads. To exacerbate the disappointment of the residents, the repair of roads began a month before the elections. The corrupt people try to show how honest they are by laying a thin coat of asphalt on the road and think that people will forget their past suffering.
 
The people of Bilaspur have exposed the ugly designs of these corrupt ministers. The repair work stopped a day before the elections. There were reports of cash, sarees, alcohol being handed out in exchange for votes. The people are not as stupid as the minister would like to believe. Social workers and human rights defenders were labelled ‘Urban Naxals’, divisions between temples and mosques were being played up, ugly comments about Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were made and many advertisements were on TV channels. Every trick that could garner votes was tried. The tricks didn’t pay off and the day of election Nov 20 had come.
 
This time everyone was convinced that the sitting MLA will lose. Meanwhile, people in the polling booths of Bilaspur started shouting. Hundreds of people were going to the polling booth in every ward, but they were returning without casting a vote. The names of these people were missing from the voter’s list. There were many people who had voted the last time.
 
Prashant Thakur, a resident of Shanti Nagar in Bilaspur, said that the name of his entire family was not in the list, but everyone had voted in the last election. Arun Bhange, a resident of Masanganj, said that there are nine members in his house, out of which seven people couldn’t cast their votes as their names were missing from the voter’s list.
 
Most of the missing names would’ve voted against BJP
Around 35,000 voters could not cast their votes because their names were missing from the voter’s list.
 
There were some similarities in the way the above two voters were not allowed to vote.
 
One had asked people to not vote for on his social media and the other had a Congress flag hoisted outside his workplace.
 
It could be a coincidence that somebody spoke against BJP and didn’t get to cast their vote.

If only 10-20 names had been missing, it could have been seen as an oversight. But 35,000? It can’t merely be a coincidence. It is enough to make a losing candidate win.  
 
Is this a political understanding? There should be a serious investigation in this case.
 

The post Election Watch Chhattisgarh: 35K voter names missing from a constituency of two lakh people appeared first on SabrangIndia.

working committee of Jamait

Jamiat took decision to launch voter’s list movement in the wake of revelation made by Centre for Research and Debates in Development Policy (CRDDP) that names of several lakhs Muslims have been missing from the voter’s lists that is affecting electoral and social strength of community. In order to rectify the anomaly, The National Working Committee has issued advisory to all its local branches in various states to take up this work on war footing. They have also been advised for creating mass awareness about the same.

The members of (JUHWC) also expressed their deep concern over the decision of Uttrakhand’s High Court for banning issuance of fatawa by Islamic institutions.  However they expressed satisfaction over stay intervention by the Apex Court.

The members of (JUHWC) also reviewed Jamiat’s committee report about ongoing reform measures undertaken by the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They have asked the committee members to submit exclusive resolution in the next meeting of (JUHWC).
The JUHWC has decided to hold its concluding centenary conference in November, 2019 at Deoband which was earlier scheduled to take place in the Month of February 2019.

In the meeting of (JUHWC) a detailed report on Jamiat’s relief and rehabilitation efforts in Kerala was also presented. The members of (JUHWC) expressed their satisfaction over this report.  It is to be noted that till now Jamiat has spent more than five crore rupees on relief and rehabilitation work in Kerala. At present, Jamiat is engaged in construction of 100 houses and repairing 100 damaged houses after flood devastation.

The meeting was attended by nearly 40 members and special invitees representing across the country.

Courtesy: Two Circles
 

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