Maharashtra Extends Voter List Deadlines Amid Election Transparency Concerns

The new schedule updates the programme issued on November 13, 2025, and pushes back key dates for the voter-list process.

The SEC's revised schedule comes two days before a Supreme Court hearing on Friday on the contentious issue of reservation in local bodies, which has been stalled for several years.

Under the revised timetable, the last date for filing claims, objections and suggestions to the draft voter lists has been extended to December 3 instead of the earlier date of November 27. The authentication and publication of the final division-wise voter lists will now be done on December 10 instead of December 5; publication of polling-station localisation lists is scheduled for December 15 instead of December 8; and publication of polling-station-wise voter lists will take place on December 22 instead of December 12.

According to the new schedule, the draft voter lists will be published on official municipal and SEC websites, allowing eligible citizens to review their details and submit any corrections or objections. Election authorities have extended key deadlines for submitting claims and objections, giving citizens additional time to address errors in voter information, request inclusion of names, or seek removals.

The SEC's decision to issue a revised schedule follows demands from opposition parties, including Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, for a longer period to submit suggestions and objections.

Shiv Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray and MNS founder Raj Thackeray had urged that the SEC provide a 21-day period for submission of suggestions and objections, or cancel the elections and hold them only after rectifying the electoral rolls. Both leaders pointed to alarming inconsistencies and frequent changes in recent voter lists, warning that these issues could undermine the transparency and integrity of the election process.

In a joint letter, the parties noted that the final revised voter list for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, dated October 30, 2025, was not published promptly or clearly, leaving voters and political parties without key information.

They questioned delays in updates to women's supplementary electoral rolls and asked why the State Election Commission had failed to clarify important procedural matters.

The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee also appealed to the SEC to extend the deadline for submitting objections and suggestions to the draft voter lists released by various municipal corporations in the state, calling the current seven-day limit inadequate. State Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal, Congress Legislature Party leader Vijay Wadettiwar and Legislative Council group leader Satej Patil, in a letter to the SEC, said the draft voter list for municipal corporation elections was published on November 20, 2025, and the deadline for submitting objections and suggestions had been set as November 27, 2025.

They added that many municipal corporations require an extension of this deadline and that the present period of only seven days was extremely short and should be extended by 15 days.

- IANS