Karnataka CEO assures safeguards against wrongful voter deletion during SIR exercise
With the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls set to begin in Karnataka from June 20, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) V. Anbu Kumar on Friday sought to allay concerns over alleged deletion of voters from voter rolls.
Addressing the media, Mr. Kumar clarified that the notices issued during the SIR process should not be interpreted as automatic deletion of names from the voter list.
“The purpose of the exercise is to ensure that no eligible voters are excluded and no ineligible voters are included, while making the electoral rolls more transparent and error-free. Voters will be given a reasonable opportunity for a hearing before a final decision on deletion is taken,” he said.
Elaborating on the process and safeguards adopted for the revision exercise, he explained that the Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will mandatorily visit every household of the 5,55,74,064 voters in the State and distribute the counting forms directly to the voters.
“The name of every voter who fills out and submits the enumeration form correctly will be included in the draft electoral roll. Notifications will only be made if the information provided in the form does not match the existing data or if technical inconsistencies arise. Notification does not automatically mean the deletion of the voter’s name,” he said.
Forms with QR codes
Mr. Kumar said counting forms with QR codes will be distributed in duplicate to each voter. One signed copy will remain with voters as approval, and the second copy will be delivered to BLO after filling in the necessary information.
“The forms will already include details such as the voter’s name, photo, ballot box number and Assembly constituency. The unique QR code can be scanned through the BLO app to instantly access voter details. If a voter’s photo is old, a new photo can be submitted along with the form. Alternatively, BLOs can also take updated photos through the app itself.”
Voters whose names appear on the 2002 electoral rolls will need to provide these details. In case such records are not available, details of relatives such as father or grandfather may be submitted for verification. Among the total electorate of the state, around 4,80,39,560 voters have been mapped, accounting for 86.46% of the progress in the ongoing verification process.
Voters can sign the form or affix their left thumb impression, Mr. Kumar said. If the voter is not available, an adult family member may sign the form and return it to BLO.
“If a voter’s name is not found in the 2002 rolls or there are any discrepancies in the data, election officials will have to issue notices asking for supporting documents,” he explained.
The CEO said documents like pension identity cards issued by the Center or State governments, bank or post office records, LIC documents, birth certificates, passports, education certificates, domicile certificates, forest rights certificates, caste certificates, land or house allotment records and Aadhaar can be submitted for verification.
Voter facilitation centers
He said voter assistance centers will be set up at the ward level in gram panchayats and urban local bodies to facilitate the process.
Mr. Kumar also said that the Election Commission will take all precautionary measures to ensure that eligible voters are not left out during the revision exercise.
More than 64,000 personnel deployed
Chief Electoral Officer V. Anbu Kumar said the SIR process will involve 31 Deputy Commissioners, 35 Deputy District Electoral Officers, 224 Electoral Registration Officers, 336 Deputy Electoral Registration Officers, 5,900 BLO auditors and 59,050 BLOs. Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Panchayats will also participate in the exercise.
Volunteers will also be assigned to assist with field-level activities. He also said that proposals for the appointment of 16 Electoral Registration Officers and 25 Deputy Electoral Registrars have also been submitted to the government.
It was published – 15 May 2026 21:09 IST
