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West Bengal SIR: During the mapping process in SIR, it was found that the names of 26 voters in West Bengal did not match with the previous list of 2002. This figure is likely to increase with further mapping.
27 November, 2025
West Bengal SIR: There is political turmoil in West Bengal regarding IR. The Mamata government of the state is strongly opposing it. Now a major flaw in the process has been revealed. The Election Commission has reported that the names of about 26 lakh voters in the current voter list of West Bengal do not match with the voter list of 2002. He said this difference came to light when the state’s latest voter list was compared with the lists prepared in different states between 2002 and 2006 during the previous SIR exercise.
This is how it was revealed
According to Election Commission sources, under the SIR process, more than six crore enumeration forms had been digitized in West Bengal till Wednesday afternoon. “Once digitized, these forms are subjected to the mapping process, where they are matched with the previous SIR records. Initial results show that the names of around 26 lakh voters in West Bengal are still not matched with the data from the previous SIR cycle,” the official said.
figure may increase
He said that as digitization continues, this figure may increase further. In the case of elections, “mapping” means cross-verifying the latest published voter list with the SIR rolls last prepared in 2002. He explained, “This process looks at how many names are there in both the lists and also checks whether the names of the parents of an existing voter are in the earlier SIR records or not. When such matches are found, the voter is automatically identified without the need for separate verification.” However, he clarified that irregularities in mapping do not mean that he will be automatically removed from the final voter roll.
Names will not be cut without investigation
The official said voters whose details match the previous list will not need to submit any other documents and can simply fill the counting form provided by the poll body. “Document-based verification will be done to confirm the identity and eligibility of those whose names do not match or cannot be traced with these records.” EC has said that the purpose of this work is to ensure accuracy and transparency in the voter roll before the upcoming elections and no eligible voter will be excluded without complete verification.
Also read- ‘Fake names were included in Bengal at the behest of TMC…’ BJP tells EC amid SIR controversy
