Bihar’s Voter List Shrinks by 70 Lakh: What the Revision Tells Us

In a major development ahead of the upcoming elections, Bihar’s latest draft voter list shows a drop of nearly 70 lakh names compared to the final roll published earlier this year. The number has fallen from 7.9 crore to 7.2 crore, raising questions, concerns, and confusion across political circles and among voters.

Why Have Voter Numbers Dropped?

The Election Commission’s ongoing post-delimitation exercise has triggered a thorough revision of electoral rolls across the state. Officials say the decline is mainly due to the removal of duplicate, shifted, or deceased voters. The last major update was conducted in January 2024, before the Lok Sabha elections.

Since then, changes in constituency boundaries and fresh mapping have led to re-verification efforts. This is common in post-delimitation scenarios, but the sheer scale of reduction—about 8.8%—has surprised many.

Delimitation: What Changed?

Delimitation is the redrawing of boundaries for electoral constituencies based on the latest census or population trends. While this is a routine part of electoral management, the recent move in Bihar has led to reshuffling of constituency lines, merging of some areas, and redrawing of polling station boundaries.

As a result, voters from one area may now fall under a different assembly seat, and in the process, their names might have been flagged for re-verification or deletion due to mismatch in data.

Political Reactions and Local Response

Opposition parties in Bihar have raised concerns about transparency and the potential exclusion of genuine voters. Some leaders allege that the trimming of the list may disproportionately affect rural voters, migrants, and underprivileged communities who may not have updated documents or were absent during verification drives.

Election officials, however, have reiterated that this is part of a technical clean-up, not a political exercise. They have urged people to verify their status and submit claims or objections before the final list is published.

What This Means for Voters in Smaller Cities

For voters in Tier 2 cities like Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, and Gaya, this voter list revision is more than just a bureaucratic update. It could determine whether they get to exercise their vote in the upcoming state and local elections.

Citizens are being encouraged to check their names through official portals or by visiting local election offices. The window for objections and corrections is open till the end of August.

Final Word

The sharp drop in Bihar’s voter count reflects the scale of electoral housekeeping underway after delimitation. While it’s meant to streamline the system and avoid irregularities, its real-world impact will be closely watched in the coming months. For voters, especially in small towns and semi-urban belts, staying informed and proactive has never been more important.