EC extends deadline for claims, objections to October 12 in Maharashtra amid SIR row

The deadline for filing claims and objections related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Maharashtra has been extended to October 12, while the deadline for their disposal has been moved to November 10, the Election Commission announced on Saturday.

The poll body has made similar changes in Delhi, extending the deadline for claims and objections to October 30 and the deadline for their disposal to November 30.

The move comes after reports of differences among the three-member Election Commission over decisions and directions concerning electoral-roll revisions, including the deletion and addition of names, changes to forms for new voters and access to voter data.

Key decisions announced by EC

At a meeting at Nirvachan Sadan attended by all three election commissioners, the Commission said voters who received notices during the SIR "for being unmapped and logical discrepancies" will no longer have to appear for a personal hearing before the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO).

Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will visit these voters at their homes to collect the required documents. These will then be uploaded to the ECINet portal "for decision by the ERO."

A hearing will be held "only in exceptional circumstances, as decided by the ERO," and will "preferably" take place online. The Commission said facilities for online hearings will also be strengthened.

District election officers have also been directed to "create adequate number of help desks/hold special camps" for people living in night shelters, as well as labourers, the poor and the homeless, "as per requirement."

The Commission said the declaration attached to Form 6 for the SIR "has been upheld by the Hon'ble Supreme Court," while outside the SIR period, forms "applicable as per Rules (the Registration of Electors Rules 1960) will be used."

CEC under fire over ‘dissent’ row

The decision comes after a report by The Indian Express, based on internal documents and interviews, said election commissioners SS Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had separately written to cabinet secretary TV Somanathan. They objected to changes in the allocation of work, saying they had removed a layer of oversight over the IT backbone of the electoral rolls.

The Commission reiterated that its SIR order of June 24, 2025 was issued "with the unanimous approval of the Commission," and had "been upheld by the Supreme Court of India," while the schedules for SIR were also issued with unanimous approval.

The Commission said SIR "has already been completed in 20 states/UTs including Bihar and West Bengal," and instructed chief electoral officers, district election officers and EROs to "immediately launch a special drive for enrolment" of voters left out of the rolls. This includes "young/first-time voters," under the process of continuous updation.