The Election Commission of India's (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is set to undergo an independent review by a five-member panel of former Supreme Court and High Court judges led by former Supreme Court judge Madan B Lokur.
The Lawyers' Association for Constitution (LAFC) has constituted the panel to examine the constitutional and statutory validity of the SIR exercise, its methodology and its overall impact on eligible voters. The commission is expected to make its report public by December 2026.
Apart from Justice Lokur, the panel includes former Supreme Court judge A.K. Patnaik, former Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Badar Durrez Ahmad, former Delhi High Court judge Rekha Sharma and former Patna High Court judge Anjana Prakash.
According to the LAFC, the panel will independently assess whether the SIR process ensured that all eligible citizens remained on the electoral rolls while ineligible entries were removed appropriately. The inquiry will include legal scrutiny of relevant laws, notifications and verification procedures.
The panel also plans to hold public hearings across the country. Full and regional benches will travel to different locations to hear from affected voters, civil society organisations and experts. A dedicated research wing will examine data relating to additions and deletions from electoral rolls.
The development comes amid continuing scrutiny of the SIR exercise. The revision has so far covered 30 states and Union Territories, with more than 13 crore names removed from draft electoral rolls, according to reports.
The Election Commission has separately directed 20 states and Union Territories where the SIR process has concluded to conduct a special drive to identify eligible voters who may have been left out and facilitate their re-enrolment through Form 6.
The ECI has also taken steps concerning the review of its ECINet system and procedures for voters issued notices during the revision. Its September 26 directions said voters flagged as unmapped or having logical discrepancies would not ordinarily need to appear personally for hearings, with field officers authorised to collect documents from their homes in such cases.
The newly formed panel is an initiative of the LAFC and is separate from the Election Commission and the Supreme Court. Its findings will therefore constitute an independent legal assessment rather than an official determination by a constitutional authority.
Senior lawyers, including Kapil Sibal, Prashant Bhushan, Chander Uday Singh, Prashanto Chandra Sen, Raju Ramachandran, Rebecca Mammen John, Warisha Farasat and Vrinda Grover, will provide strategic legal advice to the commission, according to the LAFC.
The panel's review is expected to focus on the legal framework, implementation process and impact of SIR on electoral-roll inclusion, with its final report targeted for release by December 2026.
