Ineligible Voters Identified
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal led to the provisional deletion of 11,472 voter names. This action was taken after
hearings were conducted to assess voter eligibility. The removal of these names is a significant step in ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the electoral process. Before this revision, approximately 5.8 million names had already been removed from the draft electoral roll. The Election Commission had generated 6,578,058 notices. Hearings were held for nearly 930,000 voters, ultimately leading to the identification of the ineligible voters.
District-Wise Breakdown
The district-wise data reveals considerable variation in the number of ineligible voters. Nadia recorded the highest number, with 9,228 voters identified as ineligible. Notices were issued to 494,532 voters in Nadia, with hearings conducted for 127,127 voters. Other districts also reported ineligible voters, including Murshidabad (68), North 24 Parganas (147), South 24 Parganas (69), Kolkata North (54), and Howrah (26). Other districts with ineligible voters include Cooch Behar (10), Jalpaiguri (4), Darjeeling (2), Uttar Dinajpur (2), Dakshin Dinajpur (195), and Malda (15). Hooghly reported 989 ineligible voters, and smaller numbers were found in Purba Medinipur (2), Paschim Medinipur (105), Purulia (44), Purba Bardhaman (167), Birbhum (264), Alipurduar (9), Kalimpong (65), Jhargram (3), and Paschim Bardhaman (4). Notably, Kolkata South and Bankura did not identify any ineligible voters so far, despite generating 136,561 and 163,357 notices, respectively.
Notice Generation Process
The Election Commission generated a total of 6,578,058 notices. However, 7,419,356 cases were still pending notice generation. Out of the notices that were generated, 3,249,091 had been delivered, while 3,328,967 remained undelivered. Approximately 930,000 hearings had been completed. As the process continued, a significant number of cases remained unresolved. The total number of pending cases stood at 1,414,180. A considerable number of these, 781,641, had been pending for more than five days. Out of the total pending cases, 46,794 had been verified, while 434 remained unverified. These statistics highlight the scale of the ongoing efforts to ensure the accuracy of the electoral rolls.
Outcomes and Verification
The outcomes recorded by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) showed that 11,472 voters were found ineligible for final publication, and 34 cases were parked for final publication. This indicates that these cases were undergoing final review. The verification process, which includes notice generation, delivery, and hearings, plays a crucial role in determining voter eligibility. The data reveals the complexity of the process, with a large number of cases at different stages of verification. The continuous monitoring and verification efforts are essential for maintaining the integrity of the electoral rolls.
