Arvind Kejriwal and family among prominent voters flagged during Delhi SIR verification drive. (Img: Pinterest)
New Delhi: The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the national capital has triggered a fresh political debate after former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his family members and several prominent personalities received notices over discrepancies in voter records. The issue has gained attention because the verification drive involves millions of voters and comes ahead of the final publication of Delhi’s updated electoral roll.
The Delhi Chief Electoral Officer’s office has clarified that receiving a notice does not mean a voter’s name has been removed from the list. The notices are part of a verification mechanism under the claims and objections process to check and update voter details before the final electoral roll is released.
AAP national convener and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, registered as a voter from the New Delhi Assembly constituency, received a notice along with his wife Sunita Kejriwal, son Pulkit Kejriwal and parents Gobind Ram Kejriwal and Gita Devi.
According to election officials, Kejriwal and his family members were flagged because their voter details could not be mapped with the previous Special Intensive Revision database. Their names appeared among voters from Part 51, KG Marg, in the New Delhi Assembly constituency who were issued notices during the verification process.
Officials said the records of Kejriwal and his family would be examined after submission of relevant documents, following which their names would be processed for inclusion in the final voter list.
The Special Intensive Revision exercise is aimed at improving the accuracy of electoral rolls by identifying outdated records, missing links and inconsistencies in voter information.
The Delhi Election Commission has issued notices to more than 33 lakh voters whose enumeration forms showed discrepancies. These include voters whose details could not be linked with previous SIR records, mismatches in names, age-related issues and other logical inconsistencies.
The exercise involved door-to-door verification between June 30 and August 17, during which voters were required to submit updated details through enumeration forms.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta was also among the prominent voters whose records were flagged during the SIR process. Officials said her case involved an age-related mismatch identified from the details provided in the enumeration form. However, after verification by the Booth Level Officer (BLO) and examination of documents, her electoral entry was validated.
The Delhi CEO office confirmed that Rekha Gupta’s name will remain included in the final electoral roll of the Shalimar Bagh Assembly constituency.
The SIR notice list also included several other well-known personalities. Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal received a notice due to non-mapping of his voter details with the previous revision database.
Former Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva and BJP leader Sudhanshu Mittal were also among those whose records were flagged. Sachdeva’s case involved a name-related discrepancy, and he said the correction process would be completed through required documents.
The draft electoral roll released after the revision process contains around 97.53 lakh electors. Election officials said the changes reflect the extensive verification exercise conducted to identify inconsistencies and improve the quality of voter data.
Officials also highlighted that a large number of cases involved missing links with the previous SIR conducted in 2002. The objective, according to authorities, is to ensure that genuine voters remain part of the electoral system while maintaining accurate records.
Voters who have received SIR notices are required to submit replies along with supporting documents to the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) of their respective Assembly constituencies.
The claims and objections process will continue until September 30, while voters have been given time until October 29 to submit required documents. The final electoral roll of Delhi is expected to be published on November 4 after completion of verification and correction procedures.
The notices issued to Arvind Kejriwal and his family members have led to political reactions, with the Aam Aadmi Party raising questions over the verification process.
Election authorities, however, have maintained that the SIR exercise is a routine electoral database verification process and that notices are issued only where records require additional confirmation.
The controversy has brought renewed focus on voter database accuracy, electoral transparency and the process through which millions of voter records are updated before elections.
