EC Calls 2.06 Lakh Bengal Voter Links 'Scientifically Impossible'
The Election Commission of India has made a startling revelation before the Supreme Court. It identified 2.06 lakh electors in West Bengal who linked themselves to six or more children during electoral roll verification. The poll body described many such cases as "scientifically impossible to entertain as valid mapping."
Greater Scrutiny for Suspicious Links
In an affidavit filed on Sunday, the EC defended its actions in issuing notices to voters flagged for "logical discrepancies." The commission emphasized that cases where six or more electors mapped themselves to one person merit greater scrutiny. This scrutiny aims to ensure the correctness of parent-children relationships in electoral records.
The Supreme Court is currently hearing petitions challenging the EC's June 24, 2025 order. That order initiated a Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in twelve states and Union Territories, including West Bengal.
Five Categories of Discrepancies
The Election Commission explained that Electoral Registration Officers generated notices for five types of identified discrepancies:
- Name mismatches between current and previous electoral rolls
- Age gaps under 15 years between elector and parent
- Age gaps over 50 years between elector and parent
- Age gaps under 40 years between elector and grandparents
- Six or more electors mapped as progeny of one person
Regarding age gap categories, the EC acknowledged possible validity but noted they raise suspicion. The commission cited the National Family Health Survey-5 data showing average Indian families have just two or three children.
Extreme Cases Emerge
The affidavit revealed shocking numbers beyond the 2.06 lakh cases with six or more children. The EC reported 4.59 lakh electors linked to more than five children. More extreme cases included:
- 8,682 electors linked to more than 10 children
- 50 electors linked to more than 20 children
- 14 electors linked to more than 30 children
- 10 electors linked to more than 40 children
- 10 electors linked to more than 50 children
- 7 electors linked to more than 100 children
- 2 electors linked to more than 200 children
The commission provided specific examples, including two electors linked to 389 and 310 progeny respectively.
Verification Process Explained
The EC clarified that notices are not automatically generated. Electoral Registration Officers manually generate them through the ERO App after applying their judgment. The officers consider information from Booth Level Officers regarding mapping entries and their linkage to the previous 2002 SIR roll.
Unlike annual revisions where officials make additions and deletions, the Special Intensive Revision requires preparing fresh rolls. All electors must submit enumeration forms within one month. Certain categories then receive requests for additional documents to prove eligibility, including citizenship.
The period for serving notices continues until January 31. The Supreme Court has scheduled the next hearing for Tuesday.
The Election Commission's reply marks its first detailed explanation of the notice generation process for logical discrepancies flagged by software. This process wasn't mentioned in either the June 2025 order or the October 2025 detailed instructions for the twelve states and UTs undergoing SIR.
