SIR Stir: Bihar Man Declared Dead Fights to Prove He's Alive

In a bizarre twist in Bihar’s Bhojpur district, Mintu Paswan, a living resident, was forced to visit the state’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on Thursday to confirm he is very much alive. This followed his shocking discovery that the Election Commission’s special intensive revision (SIR) had declared him deceased, stripping his name from the voter rolls. Paswan, accompanied by a delegation from the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, presented his case in a bid to rectify the error and restore his voting rights.

Paswan, visibly distressed, spoke to reporters outside the CEO’s office, saying, “I was horrified to learn I’d been marked dead in the voter list revision. No booth-level officer ever came to my home to verify anything.” His ordeal highlights a troubling issue in the electoral process, where names are being removed without proper checks. The CPI(ML) Liberation, which has been vocal about such errors, took Paswan to the Supreme Court earlier this week to challenge the SIR process.

Kunal, the CPI(ML)-L secretary, criticized the system, pointing out that Paswan was asked to fill out Form 06, typically used for new voters, despite having voted in previous elections. “This is exactly why our general secretary, Dipankar Bhattacharya, opposed the SIR in the Supreme Court,” Kunal explained. He revealed that the booth-level officer (BLO) responsible for Paswan’s case admitted to a mistake, claiming Paswan’s name was accidentally removed instead of another individual’s. “If the BLO is telling the truth, the dead person’s name should still be on the draft electoral rolls,” Kunal added, calling the situation a “comedy of errors” that has left Paswan running from one office to another.

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The CPI(ML)-L has identified 21 individuals across Bihar who were wrongfully declared dead, resulting in their names being struck off the voter list. Of these, 10 were presented before the Supreme Court, which acknowledged errors in only two cases—Paswan’s and that of a woman from Raghopur, the assembly seat represented by opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, an ally of the Left. Kunal expressed skepticism about the Election Commission’s response, accusing it of dismissing concerns by claiming political parties have not raised sufficient objections. “We will continue to assist affected individuals to ensure their names are reinstated on the voters’ list,” he vowed.

The CEO has instructed Paswan to submit Form 06 to the same BLO who made the initial error, raising concerns about accountability. Paswan’s case underscores broader issues with the SIR process, which critics argue lacks transparency and adequate verification. As Bihar gears up for future elections, such errors could disenfranchise eligible voters, prompting calls for a more robust system to prevent such mistakes. For now, Paswan and others like him are left navigating bureaucratic hurdles to reclaim their right to vote, hoping their voices will be heard before the next election.

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