NEW DELHI — Fresh concerns have emerged over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Uttar Pradesh after Muslim residents in Bulandshahr said that Hindu voters were listed at their home address without their Knowledge. The district administration ordered an inquiry after the issue came to light on January 15.
According to residents of Pathan Tola in Pahasu town under Shikarpur tehsil, the draft voter list released after the SIR process showed names of people they do not recognise. Residents say these entries appeared only after the revision exercise began last month.
Local resident Sagir Khan submitted a written complaint to the administration, stating that the voter list had been correct before the SIR exercise and that problems surfaced only after the draft list was published.
“Before the SIR work started, the voter list was fine. After the draft list came out, we saw names that do not belong to our homes,” Khan said.
He claimed that at least six Muslim families found Hindu voters registered at their addresses. “In our area, the number of voters suddenly went up in at least eight houses. In my own house, number 125, seven new names have been added, all Hindu. Similar increases are seen in other houses. Around 56 voters have been added from our area,” he said.
Residents said they fear such errors could affect their voting rights and raise doubts about the fairness of the electoral process. They also questioned how people from other communities were linked to their homes without any physical verification or consent.
Shikarpur Sub-Divisional Magistrate Arun Kumar confirmed that problems had been found in the draft list. He said corrections were being processed through Form 8, which is used to amend voter details.
“The inquiry is ongoing. In 307 cases, corrections are being processed through Form 8. After verification, all genuine complaints will be resolved,” Kumar said. He added, “Action can be initiated against officials responsible for this work if faults are confirmed.”
At the same time, Kumar said the issue was limited to errors in the draft list. “This is a case of mistakes in the draft voter list, nothing beyond that,” he said.
Similar issues were reported earlier from Gorakhpur district, raising wider concerns over the SIR process. In ward number 16 of the city, 233 voters were reportedly shown as registered at a single house number.
According to an NDTV report, at house number 617 under booth number 260 in Digvijaynagar, voter names numbered from 378 to 610 were listed. These included names such as Javed, Razzak, Sudarshan Singh, Garima Singh, Mahfooz, Hashmi, and Shehnawaz, belonging to different families and communities.
Local residents in Gorakhpur said such entries point to data entry errors, as it is not possible for so many people to live at one address. “This looks like a clear technical error,” a resident said.
Muslim residents and activists say repeated mistakes in Muslim localities must be taken seriously. They argue that errors during electoral revisions often affect marginalised groups and can weaken trust in the democratic process.
The Election Commission has asked voters to check the draft list and file objections where necessary. District officials have said verification will continue and corrections will be made after on-ground checks.
