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SP's Ram Gopal Yadav: Why the Election Commission is 'Confused' on Voter Rolls

Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav has launched a sharp critique of the Election Commission's ongoing voter list revision. He claims the process is deeply flawed, with Booth Level Officers incorrectly categorizing voters. Yadav warns that this could lead to a massive, unjust reduction in the electorate. The ECI has since extended deadlines for the Special Intensive Revision to address transparency concerns.

Key Points: Ram Gopal Yadav Slams ECI Over Special Intensive Revision Process

  • Yadav alleges BLOs wrongly marked many living voters as dead or displaced
  • He warns lakhs of votes could be cut if flawed notices are not received
  • The MP criticizes placing long-term voters in Category C requiring document submission
  • ECI extended SIR deadlines for transparency after political party concerns
3 min read

We believe in SIR, ECI is confused, says Ram Gopal Yadav

Samajwadi Party MP Ram Gopal Yadav alleges widespread errors in voter list revision, warning of massive vote cuts due to ECI's 'confused' SIR process.

"In the SIR, we believe the Election Commission itself is confused. - Ram Gopal Yadav"

New Delhi, Dec 10

Samajwadi Party MP Ram Gopal Yadav on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on the Election Commission of India, claiming that the ECI itself appeared to be confused during the Special Intensive Revision process, which is still in progress in 12 states and union territories.

Speaking to IANS, Ram Gopal Yadav said, “In the SIR, we believe the Election Commission itself is confused. On a large scale, BLOs have marked people as absent, permanently displaced, or even deceased. Some of those who have been shown as dead may in fact still be alive.”

He added, “If the situation continues on such a large scale, votes will be cut.”

Yadav further said, “The most dangerous part of this is that a voter registered in 2003, who continues to be a voter in 2025, does not need to submit any documents as per the Election Commission’s rules. They only need to fill out a form to remain a voter. There are lakhs of such cases. For example, I have been voting since 1967, long before 2003, and I will continue voting in 2025. Yet we have been placed in Category C, and now we will receive notices asking for documents. On one hand, the Election Commission says no documents are needed; on the other hand, to reduce the workload of officials, staff, and collectors, everyone has been placed in Category C.”

“Before cutting any vote, it is necessary to issue a notice. The SDM said that notices were sent, but people never received them. If you do not receive the notice, you cannot respond, and your vote will be cut. Already, two to three lakh votes have been cut, and this number may increase by another two to three lakh. Only 50 per cent of the votes may remain. This is the real issue, and people are not understanding it,” he told IANS.

Meanwhile, on December 1, the Election Commission extended the timeline for SIR Phase 2 across all 12 states and UTs, allowing an additional week for booth-level officers (BLOs) to share the list of absent, shifted, dead, and duplicate electors with booth-level agents (BLAs) of political parties before the publication of the draft electoral roll, ensuring full transparency. The enumeration period will now continue until December 11 instead of the earlier December 4.

The draft electoral roll will be published on December 16 instead of December 9. Claims and objections can be submitted until January 15, 2026, and the final roll will be published on February 14 (earlier February 7).

- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priyanka N
My uncle received a notice asking for documents even though he has been voting at the same booth for 25 years. The process seems very chaotic. The extension is good, but the confusion on the ground is real. Hope they sort it out before the final roll.
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Aman W
While I respect the ECI, such confusion during revision is unacceptable. "Notices were sent but not received" is a classic excuse. They should use SMS and email along with physical notices. We need a tech-savvy, foolproof system.
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Sarah B
As an observer, the extension of deadlines shows the ECI is at least trying to be responsive. The Category C issue sounds like a major bureaucratic glitch. Hopefully, the extra time allows for proper verification and prevents wrongful deletion of votes.
K
Karthik V
Yaar, this is why people lose faith in the system. My vote is my right. If lakhs of votes are cut due to clerical errors, what's the point? ECI should conduct a proper audit and fix this mess. Jai Hind!
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Michael C
The core issue seems to be a conflict between simplifying the process (no documents needed for pre-2003 voters) and administrative burden. Placing everyone in Category C creates unnecessary work for citizens. The ECI needs to streamline its own internal workflow without inconveniencing voters.

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