Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar announced on Sunday that Telangana would be the next state to take up Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. "We hope that like Bihar had set a new benchmark in the country for 'purifying' voter lists, Telangana also sets up a similar example," Kumar told Booth Level Officers at Ravindra Bharati Auditorium in Hyderabad.
This is part of a nationwide effort to cleanse the registry of duplicates and "ghost" entries, a process lauded for its painstakingness yet fought at every step for possibly sidelining marginalised groups. Kumar stressed that a clean voter list is the very bedrock of free and fair elections, adding that the SIR goes much further than the routine annual updates, which require actual door-to-door checks and the most stringent document verification.
The scale of the project is massive; each BLO in the state is expected to handle an average of 930 voters, with a mandate to balance transparency with inclusivity. According to commission sources, Telangana was selected for this phase due to its advanced digital infrastructure and a relatively stable political environment following the 2023 Assembly elections.
The state’s Chief Electoral Officer, C Sudharshan Reddy, has already begun preparatory work to manage the rollout and minimise voter confusion during the transition.
But the initiative does not come without its fair share of critics. Opposition parties, such as Congress and different regional outfits, have pressed on the fear that SIR would turn into "vote theft," on the ground that it severely affects the undocumented minorities, poor, and migrants, who would struggle to provide fresh documentation. The current government under Revanth Reddy, full of welfare schemes, is pretty sensitive to any perceived disruption in the voter base and will likely ignite intense political tension in the upcoming months.
Also read: Panchayat Polls: Cong's dominance continues in rural Telangana
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