EC Issues Fresh Guidelines for Voter List Revision

The Election Commission of India has issued important instructions to state authorities regarding the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The Commission directed officials to report any suspected foreign nationals identified during the revision process to the authorities concerned under the Citizenship Act, 1955. It also instructed Assistant Electoral Registration Officers to exercise their powers independently while handling such cases.

The Commission further directed Booth Level Officers to verify cases where enumeration forms are not returned and record reasons such as absence, migration, death, or duplicate entries. According to the guidelines issued on August 14, the third phase of the revision exercise began in 16 states and 3 Union Territories, including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Since May 30, the process has been carried out in phases covering approximately 36.73 crore voters. Opposition parties have criticized the exercise, alleging that it could target certain sections of voters.