Bihar voter count drops to 7.42 cr; 65 lakh deleted, 21 lakh added during SIR

The total number of electors in poll-bound Bihar has come down by nearly 47 lakh to 7.42 crore in the final electoral roll published by the Election Commission on Tuesday.  The state’s vote count was 7.89 crore before the start of the special intensive revision (SIR) of the voter rolls.

The final figure has, however, increased by 17.87 lakh from 7.24 crore electors named in the August 1 draft list, following which claims and objections were invited till September 1. The draft list was released after 65 lakh voters were removed on various accounts, including death, migration and duplication of electors.

Also, the final tally is only six lakh more than the 7.36 crore voters recorded during the 2020 Assembly elections. In contrast, within just two months — between the release of the draft rolls on August 1 and the final list on September 30 — 21.53 lakh new eligible voters were added. The SIR exercise had begun on June 24 with the distribution and collection of enumeration forms.

As per the data, the state had 7.89 crore voters at the start of the SIR on June 24, 2025. But after the draft rolls were released on August 1, the figure dropped to 7.24 crore as 65 lakh names were removed. From this draft, another 3.66 lakh ineligible voters were deleted while 21.53 lakh fresh names were included, taking the final tally to 7.42 crore.

The EC figures reveal Bihar had 7.89 crore electors before the SIR began, but its own data shows that during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the state had 7.72 crore voters, around 17 lakh fewer than the pre-SIR figure.

The 7.89 crore number was arrived at after a summary revision in January 2025, suggesting 17 lakh voters were added within months of the Lok Sabha polls, which ended in May 2024. A comparison of the 2020 Assembly and 2024 Lok Sabha polls shows a much larger increase, with 36 lakh voters added over four years, rising from 7.36 crore to 7.72 crore.

The EC on Tuesday said eligible persons could still apply for inclusion up to 10 days before the last date of filing nominations for the upcoming Assembly elections. Those dissatisfied with entries in the rolls may file appeals under Section 24 of the RP Act, 1950, first with the District Magistrate and then with the Chief Electoral Officer of Bihar.

The poll body credited the large-scale revision to the efforts of the state CEO, DEOs, EROs, nearly 3,000 assistant officials, around one lakh booth-level officers, lakhs of volunteers and the involvement of 12 political parties through more than 1.6 lakh booth-level agents.