Senior Congress leader Pawan Khera dropped a bombshell on Sunday, claiming that the Election Commission (EC) rejected a staggering 89 lakh complaints filed by the party’s Booth Level Agents (BLAs) regarding irregularities in Bihar’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. As the deadline for claims and objections closes on September 1, Khera accused the EC of dismissing legitimate concerns and demanded a complete redo of the SIR exercise, alleging it casts doubt on the poll body’s impartiality.

Addressing a press conference in Patna, Khera, chairman of the Congress’s media and publicity department, said, “Our BLAs submitted 89 lakh complaints about irregularities in the SIR, but the EC rejected them, claiming only individuals, not parties, can file objections.” He alleged that the EC has been downplaying the issue by suggesting no complaints were received, undermining the democratic process. Khera highlighted that 65 lakh voters were removed from Bihar’s electoral rolls across 90,540 booths, including 25 lakh due to migration, 22 lakh due to deaths, and 9.7 lakh for being absent at listed addresses.

Particularly alarming, Khera noted, are 20,368 booths where over 100 names were deleted and 1,988 booths with over 200 deletions. He claimed 7,613 booths saw more than 70% of women’s names removed, and 635 booths had over 75% of migrant category deletions being women, raising concerns of targeted disenfranchisement. Khera also pointed to cases of voters receiving duplicate EPIC numbers, backed by receipts, and urged the EC to conduct door-to-door verification to rectify these errors.

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The Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office in Bihar refuted Khera’s claims, stating that no BLA authorized by any Congress district president had submitted claims or objections in the prescribed format. The CEO emphasized that the draft rolls, published on August 1, are subject to public scrutiny, and alleged duplicates—such as the 67,826 “dubious” cases cited in media—require field verification, not automatic deletion. “Demographic similarities, common in rural Bihar, don’t prove duplication without ground checks,” the statement read, citing Supreme Court rulings.

With 99.11% of Bihar’s 7.24 crore electors having submitted verification documents, the EC is under pressure as the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and others approach the Supreme Court on Monday, seeking an extension for inclusion claims. The final electoral roll, critical for the November elections, will be published on September 30. Khera’s allegations have intensified political tensions, with the Congress accusing the EC of bias and undermining federalism, while the EC insists its ERONET 2.0 software and verification processes ensure a fair revision.

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