Three men, one mission: How EC officials transformed Bihar's electoral system

Time of India

18 hours ago

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Over the decades, three Election Commission officials have left an indelible mark on Bihar's tumultuous electoral process. From confronting booth capturing in the 1990s to curbing muscle power in the 2000s and now checking bogus voters in 2025, each has faced resistance, made bold interventions and reshaped how elections are conducted in the state.
TOI's Manoj Chaurasia highlights how these officers changed the course of Bihar's democracy.
T N Seshan: The first serious shake-up came during the 1995 Bihar assembly elections under the watch of then chief election commissioner T N Seshan. At the time, elections in the state were marred by rampant booth grabbing, intimidation and open violence. Ballot papers were still in use and Bihar had acquired a reputation for lawlessness at the polls.
Seshan responded with extraordinary resolve. He ordered massive reshuffles of district magistrates, deployed central paramilitary forces at sensitive booths and implemented strict administrative controls to curb malpractices. His actions captured the public imagination.
"Seshan emerged as a model for every citizen and voter in Bihar for the kind of sincere action he took to ensure free and fair polling. He made people understand the power and purpose of the Election Commission," political analyst Ashok Mishra said.
But not everyone was pleased. Then chief minister Lalu Prasad, angered by what he saw as overreach, famously lashed out, comparing Seshan to a rampaging bull. Yet, despite the political hostility, Seshan's intervention is remembered as a turning point when the EC began to be seen not just as a regulator, but as a guardian of democratic integrity.
K J Rao: A decade later, during the 2005 assembly elections, it was K J Rao, then adviser to the Election Commission, who took centre stage in Bihar.
Operating out of Room No. 328 in a Patna hotel near Gandhi Maidan, Rao oversaw one of the most closely monitored election operations in the state's history.
With the RJD once again in power, Rao personally supervised compliance with the model code of conduct. He didn't hesitate to go after powerful political figures. Mohammad Shahabuddin was moved from Siwan to Beur Jail in Patna and both he and Sadhu Yadav, Lalu's brother-in-law, were externed from their constituencies while out on bail.
His assertiveness forced even Lalu to cancel a planned rally, unheard of in Bihar's political theatre. Rao's presence sent a clear message – the rule of law would prevail over muscle power. His hands-on, fearless approach won admiration across the political spectrum and helped restore credibility to the electoral process.
Gyanesh Kumar: Now, in 2025, chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has stepped into the spotlight with the launch of a special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
His goal – weeding out bogus voters and ensuring electoral purity ahead of the upcoming assembly elections.
But the move triggered a political storm. The opposition INDIA bloc accused the EC of attempting to disenfranchise genuine, poor voters under the guise of verification. Protests were held in Patna and the matter reached the Supreme Court.
Though the court refused to halt the process, it directed the EC to consider Aadhaar, voter ID and ration cards as valid documents alongside 11 others already prescribed.
This intervention helped ease tensions, but Kumar's effort remains closely watched.
Despite the criticism, the EC under Kumar has maintained that the revision is a legally mandated exercise to improve voter list accuracy, not a citizenship drive. With a massive administrative apparatus deployed and digital monitoring in place, Kumar now finds himself at the centre of Bihar's most controversial electoral clean-up in years.