05 October,2026 02:17 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defends the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls amid opposition to the exercise. File pic
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday defended the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, describing it as a continuation of a decades-old process followed by the Election Commission of India to maintain accurate voter lists.
Fadnavis said intensive revisions were not a new development and argued that such exercises were periodically undertaken to protect the principle of "One Citizen, One Vote" and ensure the integrity of elections.
His remarks came a day after the âGarjana Morcha' led by Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray demanded that SIR be scrapped in Maharashtra and elections be conducted using ballot papers.
In a post on X, Fadnavis referred to several intensive voter-roll revision exercises undertaken since Independence.
"During 1952-1956: The first major intensive revision conducted by the Election Commission across most parts of the country following India's early general elections. Successive nationwide revisions executed to ensure nascent electoral rolls reflected growing populations and demographic shifts in 1957, 1961, 1965 & 1966. Periodic door-to-door enumeration drives carried out to cleanse rolls during periods of rapid political and social transition in 1983-1984, 1987-1989, 1992, 1993 & 1995. Comprehensive voter list overhauls undertaken ahead of major national polling cycles in 2002, 2003 & 2004," he noted.
The Chief Minister said voter demographics keep changing because of urbanisation, migration, newly eligible voters, deaths and transfers between constituencies. He argued that periodic verification was therefore necessary to maintain the accuracy of electoral rolls.
"Rapid urbanisation, frequent migration, additions of newly eligible youth, unrecorded deaths, and constituency transfers continuously alter voter demographics. Over the past 20 years alone, millions of names have been added and deleted. Periodic, in-depth verification is essential so that no eligible citizen is excluded, and no illegal or duplicate entry remains," he said.
Fadnavis also outlined the process through which the current SIR exercise is being conducted, stressing that it involves verification at the ground level.
"Door-to-Door Visits: Enumerators conduct physical visits to verify household voter data. Form Distribution & Collection: Distribution and collection of official Enumeration Forms directly from citizens. Record Cleaning: Updating records to remove deceased voters and eliminate duplicate registrations across constituencies. Public Verification: Allowing citizens to verify their details, correct spelling or address errors, and submit updated credentials," he stated.
He described SIR as a routine constitutional process intended to ensure fair, transparent and accurate elections in Maharashtra and across the country.
Fadnavis also criticised the rally organised by Uddhav and Raj Thackeray, describing it as an attempt to "reclaim lost ground".
He claimed that the turnout at the rally was low despite the publicity surrounding the event and accused the Thackeray brothers of directing their frustration towards the Election Commission after being rejected by voters.
The Chief Minister also questioned their allegations of irregularities in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections and their demand for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Fadnavis pointed out that Gyanesh Kumar became Chief Election Commissioner in 2025, while the Maharashtra Assembly elections were held in 2024 and the current SIR exercise is taking place in 2026.
He questioned how the appointment of a CEC in 2025 or an electoral-roll revision conducted in 2026 could have influenced an election held in 2024.
Fadnavis further alleged that the Thackeray brothers, having been rejected by the public, were now directing their frustration at the Election Commission.
(With inputs from IANS)
