Lawyers’ Association forms ex‑judges panel to review Election Commission’s SIR of voter rolls

Panel of ex‑judges formed

On 2 October 2026 the Lawyers Association for Constitution (LAFC) announced the creation of an independent five‑member commission to review the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The panel is chaired by former Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B. Lokur and includes Justice A. K. Patnaik, Justice Badar Durrez Ahmad (former chief justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court), and former High Court judges Justice Rekha Sharma and Justice Anjana Prakash.

Members and legal advisers

The ex‑judges will be supported by a group of senior lawyers who will provide strategic advice. LAFC listed Kapil Sibal, Prashant Bhushan, C. U. Singh, Raju Ramachandran, Rebecca Mammen John, Warisha Farasat, Vrinda Grover and Prashanto Chandra Sen as advisers.

Scope of the review

According to LAFC, the commission will assess the constitutional and statutory validity, methodology and overall impact of the SIR exercise on eligible voters. It will determine whether eligible citizens were retained on the rolls and whether ineligible entries were correctly removed. The panel plans to hold nationwide public hearings, travelling with full and regional benches to record testimonies from affected citizens, civil‑society groups and experts. LAFC said the commission will work with “complete autonomy” and deliver its findings by December 2026.

Special drive and West Bengal confusion

Separately, the ECI has launched a special drive to enrol voters left out after the SIR. In West Bengal, officials have not clarified whether the 2.2 million voters whose deletion appeals are pending before appellate tribunals can use Form 6 to re‑enrol during the drive. A senior poll‑panel official told the Hindustan Times that the drive “will not apply to those voters whose cases are pending before the Appellate Tribunals in West Bengal.”

The state’s Chief Electoral Officer has held meetings with district election officers (DEOs) and electoral registration officers (EROs) to roll out the drive, but DEOs report no written guidance on the issue. The confusion has prompted the West Bengal Congress to write to the ECI seeking clarification, while CPI(M) leader Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya demanded a fresh, house‑to‑house verification of the rolls.

Next steps

The ex‑judges panel will begin its field research and legal scrutiny while the ECI’s special drive proceeds in states where SIR is complete. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have been instructed to compare current rolls with pre‑SIR lists, conduct house‑to‑house verification and collect Form 6 applications on the spot. Each BLO is expected to cover 20‑25 electors a week, with the entire drive slated for completion within a month.

The parallel processes – an independent judicial review and an on‑ground enrolment drive – underscore the scale of the controversy surrounding the SIR. Outcomes from the panel’s December report could shape how the ECI addresses pending appeals, especially the 2.2 million West Bengal cases, and may lead to legislative or procedural reforms for future roll revisions.