West Bengal SIR: Shocking ‘Logical Discrepancies’ Challenge Science, Election Commission Urges Supreme Court Action!
People queued at a center in Balurghat, Dakshin Dinajpur district, West Bengal, on January 20, 2026, as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The Election Commission (EC) of India raised concerns about significant “logical discrepancies” within the electoral roll for the state. An unusual report revealed electors linked to implausibly high numbers of children, with some claiming over 200 offspring. In total, the EC noted, there were two electors with more than 200 children, seven with over 100, and 10 with more than 50, raising questions about the validity of these entries.
In an affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court, the EC indicated that it had identified around 4,59,054 cases of electors registering more than five children, and 2,06,056 electors with more than six children. This is notably at odds with the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) findings from 2019-2021, which reported an average household size of just 4.4 in India, suggesting most families consist of two or three children.
The EC’s process involves “mapping,” a technical term used to verify an elector’s lineage against the 2002 electoral roll. The Commission expressed specific concerns over cases where six or more electors were linked to a single individual, suggesting these instances required thorough examination. An additional issue highlighted was the presence of a 50-year age gap between parents and children, which the EC argued is biologically implausible given that women’s fertility rates drastically decline after the age of 45.
The EC firmly refuted criticisms suggesting that the introduction of “logical discrepancies” was merely a tactic to disenfranchise voters. “The discovery of a logical discrepancy only leads to the issuance of a notice for verification,” the affidavit clarified, emphasizing that the notices request clarification and necessary documentation from affected electors. The Commission further dismissed claims of systemic bias affecting women and minorities, as suggested by petitioners from the Trinamool Congress, including Dola Sen, arguing that only valid discrepancies would lead to notices.
In December 2025, the EC published draft rolls that led to the exclusion of approximately 58 lakh voters due to absence, death, permanent residence changes, and duplicate entries. The Commission reiterated that these exclusions should not be misconstrued as deletions, noting that a house-to-house survey preceded the draft roll’s formation. Those excluded will have the opportunity to present hearings to rectify their status, with no centralized software deletions involved.
For the SIR process, the EC mobilized a robust team comprising 80,681 Booth Level Officers (BLOs), over 7,000 Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs), 294 Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), and more than 4,000 micro-observers. The notice phase began on December 16, 2025, and will extend until February 7, 2026.
To ensure accuracy, the linking with previous SIR electoral rolls is performed manually, meaning electors who cannot establish linkage will be issued notices. Should an elector be erroneously excluded, they can provide documentation to support their claims for inclusion in the final electoral roll. The EC will scrutinize only mappings deemed incorrect or exhibiting severe irregularities unrelated to the 2002 rolls.
Additionally, the EC defended its communication practices, stating that using digital methods such as WhatsApp for instructions is a methodical and timely approach. The Commission also criticized the involvement of political party representatives at verification hearings, describing such presence as disruptive to the quasi-judicial process, which must remain focused solely on the individuals concerned.
The Supreme Court is set to review the case on January 21, 2026.
Original Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ec-tells-supreme-court-west-bengal-sir-has-logical-discrepancies/article70532508.ece
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Publish Date: 2026-01-22 01:17:00
