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Bihar ‘Special Intensive Revision' form collection touches nearly half-way mark in 14 days: ECI

Bihar ‘Special Intensive Revision' form collection touches nearly half-way mark in 14 days: ECI

Hindustan Times3 days ago
Going by the progress of SIR (Special Intensive Revision) till 6 PM on July 08, it is most likely that the exercise of collection of Enumeration Forms will be completed well before the last day of collection, i.e. July 25, a press release from the Election Commission of India said. In the first two weeks of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, 7.90 crore forms were printed, and over 97 per cent of forms (7,70,44,990) were distributed to electors.(File Photo)
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar is progressing well, with 3,70,77,077 Enumeration Forms, which is 46.95 per cent of the total of 7,89,69,844 (nearly 7.90 crore) electors in Bihar, collected (at 6:00 PM) in the first 14 days since the issuance of SIR instructions on June 24.
In the first two weeks of the exercise, 7.90 crore forms were printed, and over 97 per cent of forms (7,70,44,990) were distributed to electors. Also, 18.16 per cent of the forms have been uploaded to the ECINET. A large number of prospective electors prefer to submit the Enumeration Forms along with the eligibility documents as specified in SIR order dated 24.06.25
Now, the effort is to collect the remaining half of the enumeration forms and eligibility documents with still 17 more days before July 25.
In the last 24 hours, i.e. from 6.00 PM yesterday, 82,78,617 Enumeration Forms have been collected, which amounts to 10.5 per cent collected in a single day. Maintaining the same momentum on the field and with just about 50 per cent of forms remaining to be collected, the exercise could be completed well within time.
With the addition of 20,603 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) on the ground, the collection effort has been further expedited. Already, 77,895 BLOs have been going house-to-house to help the electors fill out their Enumeration Forms and collect them. BLOs have already completed the first of their mandated three visits to each household and the second visit is underway.
Nearly 4 lakh volunteers, including government officials, NCC cadets, NSS members, etc., are also working in the field to facilitate the elderly, PwD, sick and vulnerable populations in the SIR process. Besides, EROs covering all 243 ACs, 963 AEROs, 38 DEOs, and the CEO of the state are at the ground level to facilitate the electors to submit their forms.
District Presidents of all recognised political parties have also stepped up the appointment of Booth Level Agents (BLAs) and they are actively participating on the ground. As of date, 1,56,626 BLAs have been appointed, up from 1,38,680 at the beginning of the exercise. They can, even now, appoint more BLAs as per 25.2.1 of the Manual on Electoral Rolls.
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"Congress showing double standards on Aadhaar issue": BJP's Sambit Patra after Supreme Court verdict on SIR
"Congress showing double standards on Aadhaar issue": BJP's Sambit Patra after Supreme Court verdict on SIR

India Gazette

time39 minutes ago

  • India Gazette

"Congress showing double standards on Aadhaar issue": BJP's Sambit Patra after Supreme Court verdict on SIR

New Delhi [India], July 12 (ANI): Reacting to the Supreme Court's decision on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, BJP MP Sambit Patra accused the Congress and Opposition parties of hypocrisy, stating they earlier opposed Aadhaar-voter ID linkage but are now demanding its inclusion. He said this shift exposes their 'double standards' on Aadhaar's role in electoral reforms. Speaking to ANI, Patra said, 'The way the Opposition and the Congress are opposing the Aadhar Card, it shows their double standards. When PM Modi spoke about Aadhaar in the Parliament and said that if there are to be no middlemen, then Aadhaar is required... The Opposition and the Congress spoke against the PM.' 'In 2022, when the government decided to link Aadhaar with the voter card, Congress took the matter to the Supreme Court, arguing that Aadhaar is solely for identification purposes and that linking it with the voter card was inappropriate. Today, they are saying that voting rights and citizenship should be decided based on Aadhaar. This reflects the double standards of the Congress,' he added. Reacting to the same court order, Congress Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh stated that the Election Commission of India's (ECI) 'spin' on 'no stay' being given has been clearly 'exposed' by the Supreme Court. Ramesh, the General Secretary in charge of Communications for Congress, posted a picture of the order on X, stating that Page 7 of the order clearly indicated that any requested no stay of the petitioners. He then said that deliberately 'misleading' headline management does not befit a Constitutional authority. Meanwhile, All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi welcomed the top court's decision while hitting out at 'ECI sources' for misrepresenting the court's order. He criticised the claims made by EC sources that the constitutional body accepts Aadhar as per page 16 of the Special Intensive Revision, while also informing about the EPIC number being 'pre-printed' on the enumeration forms being meted out. On Thursday, the Supreme Court allowed the Election Commission to continue with its exercise of conducting a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi did not stay the SIR process but asked the ECI to consider allowing Aadhaar, ration cards, and electoral photo identity cards as admissible documents to prove voter identity during the SIR of electoral rolls being undertaken in Bihar. 'We are of the prima facie opinion that in the interest of justice, the Election Commission will also include documents like Aadhaar, Ration Card, Voter ID card, etc. It is for the ECI to decide whether it wants to accept the documents or not, and if it does not, then provide reasons for its decision, which shall be sufficient to satisfy the petitioners. Meanwhile, petitioners are not pressing for an interim stay,' the bench stated in its order. In its order, the top court noted that the timeline for the process is very short since elections in Bihar are due in November. The apex court posted for hearing on July 28 the pleas challenging ECI's move to conduct SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar and asked the poll panel to file its affidavit within one week. During the hearing, the bench opined that Aadhaar should be included within the list of documents permissible as an ID proof. The apex court was hearing a batch of pleas challenging the Election Commission of India's move to conduct the SIR of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. The petitions challenging the ECI decision were filed by RJD MP Manoj Jha, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), PUCL, activist Yogendra Yadav, Trinamool MP Mahua Moitra, and former Bihar MLA Mujahid petitions sought a direction to quash the ECI's June 24 directive, which requires large sections of voters in Bihar to submit proof of citizenship to remain on the electoral rolls. The petition also raised concerns over the exclusion of widely held documents like Aadhaar and ration cards, stating that this would disproportionately affect the poor and marginalised voters, especially in rural Bihar. Meanwhile, All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi welcomed the top court's decision while hitting out at 'ECI sources' for misrepresenting the court's order. He criticised the claims made by EC sources that the constitutional body accepts Aadhar as per page 16 of the Special Intensive Revision, while also informing about the EPIC number being 'pre-printed' on the enumeration forms being meted out. (ANI)

3 out of every 4 Bihar voters have filed enumeration forms, says EC
3 out of every 4 Bihar voters have filed enumeration forms, says EC

Hindustan Times

time2 hours ago

  • Hindustan Times

3 out of every 4 Bihar voters have filed enumeration forms, says EC

New Delhi: Three out of every four electors in Bihar have already submitted their enumeration forms as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, according to an official press note issued by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday. 3 out of every 4 Bihar voters have filed enumeration forms, says EC As of 6pm on Friday, 5.87 crore (58.7 million) forms — 74.39% of total —have been collected within 17 days since the SIR instructions were issued on June 24. The EC said over 77,000 Booth Level Officers (BLOs), along with 20,603 newly appointed BLOs, election officials, and more than 400,000 volunteers, have been working to ensure smooth collection and digitisation of forms ahead of the Bihar assembly elections later this year. The digitisation and uploading of 3.73 crore (37.3 million) forms through BLO App/ECINet has also begun, with a new verification module now operational. An EC official aware of the matter told HT that the new module has that been implemented in ECINet for the verification of the uploaded forms by the AERO/ERO is a 'real time' module which allows the AERO/ERO to verify against the EPIC number as to who has uploaded their Enumeration Forms and what all documents have they submitted for verification as well. 'We are banking on our strong tech and digital platforms to finish the process properly and before time so this module will help us with the same and also help us in keeping a track of the number of the people submitting documents and not just forms,' said the official. The development comes amid a political back-and-forth between the Congress and BJP following Thursday's Supreme Court hearing on petitions challenging the SIR. The court, while allowing the EC to continue the exercise, asked it to consider Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards as valid documents for the revision. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on X, 'Following the Hon'ble Supreme Court's order that has just come out officially, the Election Commission now has to include the EPIC, Aadhaar cards, and Ration Cards in the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls in Bihar. This will save a vast majority of voters from being disenfranchised.' Ramesh added, 'Moreover the EC's spin on the no stay being given has been clearly exposed. Page 7 of the order makes it clear that no stay was asked for by any of the petitioners yesterday.' The BJP, however, accused Congress of twisting the court's words. 'Stop misinterpreting the Supreme Court. The Court has not mandated the acceptance of any additional documents—it has merely said it may consider them,' BJP spokesperson Amit Malviya posted on X, warning Congress against 'deliberately misrepresenting court observations.' The Supreme Court bench led by Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi noted in its order: 'We cannot stop a constitutional body from doing what it is supposed to do. Simultaneously, we will not let them do what they are not supposed to do.' The matter is scheduled for further hearing on July 28.

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