Bihar Final Voter List Released: 7.42 Crore Eligible Voters, But Row Over Deletions Persists

BIHAR (PATNA): The Election Commission of India (ECI) has released the final voter list for Bihar ahead of the upcoming assembly elections. The list was prepared after a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and is now available on the ECI website, mobile app, and via SMS for citizens to verify their names.

What the Final Numbers Show

• Total voters in Bihar: 7,41,92,357
  • Male: 3,92,07,604
  • Female: 3,49,82,828
  • Third gender: 1,725
• Age-wise breakup:
  • Young voters (18–19 years): 14,01,150
  • Elderly voters (85+ years): 4,03,985
• Special categories:
  • Voters with disabilities: 7,20,709
• Changes made:
  • 21.53 lakh new names added
  • 68.5 lakh names deleted (deceased, duplicate, or moved away)
  • Final roll shows 6% fewer voters compared to June 24, when Bihar had 7.89 crore voters.

Physical copies have been sent to District Magistrates and shared with political parties.

Why Did This Controversy Begin?

The row over the voter list began when opposition parties alleged that the SIR process would disenfranchise millions of legitimate voters, especially among Dalits, minorities, and poor sections of society.

They argued that large-scale deletions were being carried out without proper verification and that ruling parties might benefit from this by reducing the participation of sections of the population that traditionally vote against the government.

The Election Commission countered this by saying the SIR was necessary to remove fake, duplicate, and non-existent voters and ensure clean elections.

Who Benefited From the Exercise?

• The Government / Ruling Parties: A cleaner roll ensures fewer duplicate voters and prevents bogus voting. But critics say that large-scale deletions may have disproportionately affected the poor and marginalized communities, who often face difficulty in producing documents. If true, this could indirectly benefit the ruling party by reducing the opposition’s vote share.
• The Opposition & Civil Groups: By raising the issue, they highlighted the risk of mass disenfranchisement and put pressure on the EC to allow time for corrections. This kept the issue in the public eye and may have pushed some voters to re-check their names.
• The Electorate (Voters): Genuine voters benefit from a cleaner and more accurate roll, as it reduces chances of fraud. However, those whose names were wrongly deleted may now struggle to restore their voting rights before elections.

Thus, while the EC insists the process was impartial, the political implications are clear: the battle over voter rolls has become another front in Bihar’s highly contested election.

Simplified Takeaway for Readers

• Bihar has 7.42 crore voters in the final list.
• Nearly 68.5 lakh names were deleted, sparking fears of wrongful exclusions.
• Opposition fears that Oor and Dalit voters were removed unfairly.
• The government and EC claim the exercise has made the voter list more accurate and reliable.
• The outcome of this exercise could influence who gets to vote and whose support base is weakened in the assembly elections.

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