'Linkage Columns Blank': EC Clears The Air On Mohammed Shami's SIR Form

Indian cricketer Mohammed Shami has been summoned for a hearing over his SIR form, with the Election Commission of India confirming that it was a standard administrative procedure intended to rectify clerical

mistakes.

The Election Commission (EC) said the hearing was necessitated because the linkage columns in Shami’s voter registration form for the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise were left blank.

“The claim is misleading. The enumeration form clearly shows that the linkage columns have been left blank by the elector. He has therefore been called for hearing along with all the other similarly placed electors as per the notification of ECI,” the West Bengal chief electoral officer (CEO) said in a post on X.

The Claim is Misleading.

The Enumeration Form clearly shows that the linkage columns have been left blank by the elector. He has therefore been called for
hearing along with all the other similarly placed electors as per the notification of ECI.@ECISVEEP @SpokespersonECI pic.twitter.com/0d6GK2ZdAO

— CEO West Bengal (@CEOWestBengal) January 7, 2026

Other similarly placed electors had also been asked to appear as per the standing notification of the EC. The issue arose after it was discovered that the enumeration form was incorrectly filled out by Shami and his brother, Mohammed Kaif.

“The enumeration form was incorrectly filled out by the cricketer and his brother, because of which they were called for the hearing,” said an official at the office of the West Bengal CEO. Consequently, both were required to attend a formal verification hearing at a school in Jadavpur on January 5.

The initial appointment, however, conflicted with Shami’s professional commitments. He could not appear for the scheduled SIR verification as he is in Rajkot, representing Bengal in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Following a request for new dates, authorities have successfully rescheduled the meeting for early January, with the hearing now set to take place between January 9 and 11. Documentation relating to the case highlights that he is a long-term resident of West Bengal, despite hailing originally from Uttar Pradesh.

The Indian pacer is a registered voter of ward 93 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, which falls under the Rashbehari constituency. He relocated to Kolkata at a young age to pursue his cricketing ambitions.

He established his athletic career, eventually coming under the expert guidance of former Bengal Ranji captain Sambaran Bandyopadhyay. He subsequently earned a spot in the state’s under-22 team, marking the beginning of his rise to international prominence while representing Bengal.