Bihar’s chief electoral officer on Sunday announced a relaxation in rules for the ongoing special intensive revision of the state’s electoral rolls, allowing voters to submit filled-out enumeration forms even if they lack all the required documents.

Booth-level officers have been instructed to accept and upload all signed forms, with the supporting documents to be submitted later, The Indian Express reported.

The special intensive revision of the electoral rolls in Bihar was announced by the Election Commission on June 24, ahead of the Assembly elections expected to be held in the state in October or November.

As part of the exercise, persons whose names were not on the 2003 voter list will need to submit proof of eligibility to vote. This means that 2.9 crore out of the state’s 7.8 crore voters – or about 37% of the electors – will have to submit documentary evidence.

On Wednesday, eleven INDIA bloc parties told the Election Commission that the exercise risked disenfranchising more than 2.5 crore voters, as they may not be able to produce the necessary documents.

While the Election Commission has not issued any new order, the Bihar chief electoral officer’s announcement is reportedly being seen as a response to the repeated objections from Opposition leaders and public anxiety over furnishing the documents, especially with the July 26 deadline just two weeks away.

In a public notice carried in Hindi newspapers in the state, the office of the Bihar chief electoral officer urged people to fill and submit their enumeration forms with documents and photographs “as early as possible”.

“If you provide the required documents, it will be easier for the electoral registration officer to process the application,” The Hindu quoted the notice as stating. “If you are unable to provide the required documents, the [electoral registration officer] can take a decision on the basis of local investigation or other documentary evidence.”

The special intensive revision guidelines issued earlier stated that the voters born before July 1, 1987, must show proof of their date and place of birth, while those born between July 1, 1987, and December 2, 2004, must also submit documents establishing the date and place of birth of one of their parents. Those born after December 2, 2004, will need proof of date of birth for themselves and both parents.

The last date to submit these forms was announced to be July 26.

If the officers are satisfied with the details provided, the voters will be re-enrolled to a new voter list by electoral registration officers. If not, they will be removed from the voter lists.

A draft roll will be published on August 1 and the final roll will be out on September 30.

The draft electoral rolls will include the names of existing voters whose enumeration forms have been submitted, Bihar chief electoral officer said on Sunday.

The poll officer also instructed district magistrates to “ensure maximum forms are collected so that we can ensure maximum number of voters on draft publication”, The Indian Express reported.

The instructions added that the booth-level officers already know about 90% of their voters and that forms should be uploaded for all voters except those who have died or permanently migrated.

Voter roll review challenged in SC

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra on Saturday filed a petition in the Supreme Court, challenging the Election Commission's revision of electoral rolls in Bihar.

In her writ petition she argued that the move “can lead to large-scale disenfranchisement of eligible voters in the country thereby undermining democracy and free and fair elections in the country”.

Moitra also urged the court to prevent the poll body from implementing similar revisions in other states.

Human rights organisation People’s Union for Civil Liberties has also filed a petition, calling the poll body’s directive for a countrywide special intensive revision, starting with Bihar, “arbitrary and unlawful”.

The rights group said the process undermines the basic principles of democracy.

“An illegal exercise, also hastily conducted to cover a population of almost 8 crore is likely to result in exclusion of voters and thereby defeat democracy using the very tools of democracy,” it said.

The Association for Democratic Reforms also filed a similar petition before the Supreme Court on Saturday, contending that the poll body’s order is arbitrary and could disenfranchise millions of voters.

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