In Tamil Nadu, the enumeration phase continued from November 4 to December 14. Five days later, the drafts came out. | Photo credit: File Photo
A case of “last minute” submission of forms for inclusion of names in electoral rolls during Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has emerged during a comparative examination of data provided by election officials in Tamil Nadu, leaving room for suspicion of list stuffing.
This can be estimated by perusing the statements issued by the offices of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on January 30, the last day for applications and objections, and on February 23, when the final lists were released. The submission of forms began on December 19.
Right question
According to the January 30 issue, the total number of applications received for inclusion in Form 6 or 6A was about 16.7 million and for deletion 1.4 million. The issue in question captured the status on January 29 at 8:00 p.m.
However, a February 23 report said 27.53 million eligible voters were added and 4.23 million ineligibles were deleted. This led to the question whether the authorities received at least 10.8 million requests to add and 2.8 million requests to delete in a single day (January 30, 2026), let alone those that could have been rejected.
‘Clear instructions’
Chief executive Archana Patnaik told The Hindu on Tuesday, when asked for a reaction, that stuffing of rolls was out of the question as a number of senior officials had been drafted in to ensure that the process went smoothly and properly. Moreover, the Election Commission of India’s instructions at the start of the SIR were “absolutely clear”.
Regarding the abnormal increase in the number of applications, Ms. Patnaik said the final inclusion figure includes applications received before the process that began on October 27, 2025, with a freeze on inclusion and deletion of names. It also included about 5.73 lakh applications received online, apart from those received by booth-level officials.
Tamil Nadu was among the 12 states and union territories, including West Bengal, Kerala. and Puducherry where the Election Commission conducted the SIR in the second phase. The enumeration phase ran from 4 November to 14 December. Five days later, the designs were published.
Published – 24 Feb 2026 22:48 IST
