Tejashwi Yadav claims his name missing from voter list, Election Commission calls it 'false and mischievous'

The Election Commission (EC) swiftly rebutted the allegation, calling it a “mischievous claim” and releasing documents to show he is enrolled as a voter in Patna, reported India Today.

At a press conference in Patna, Yadav displayed his Election Photo Identity Card (EPIC) number and demonstrated how entering it in the Election Commission’s official mobile application returned a “no records found” message.

“My name is also not on the voter list. How will I contest the elections?” he asked.

Soon after, the Election Commission issued a statement denying the charge and said his name appears at Serial Number 416 in the draft rolls under a booth in the Veterinary College area in Patna.

“It has come to our attention that Tejashwi Yadav has made a mischievous claim that his name does not appear in the draft electoral roll... Any claim stating otherwise is false and factually incorrect,” the poll body said, reported India Today.

It further clarified that the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) allows for a full month—from August 1 to September 1—for claims and objections.

“Pure electoral rolls are the foundation of any democracy,” it said.

The EC also noted that no Booth Level Agent (BLA) from any political party, including the RJD, submitted even a single case to Booth Level Officers (BLOs) in the last 24 hours.

“He should ask 47,506 BLAs of his party to file claims and objections if they find that the name of any eligible voter is left out or that of any ineligible person has been included,” the statement added. The EC said all RJD BLAs received booth-wise draft lists on August 1 and had agreed to scrutinise them.

However, a discrepancy emerged between the EPIC number shared by Yadav and the one cited by the Election Commission.

The controversy comes amid the EC’s decision to eliminate 65 lakh names it flagged as illegal voters as part of the SIR exercise—a move that has drawn fierce criticism from the Opposition.

Parties have termed the revision an “exercise in exclusion” and alleged it aims to disenfranchise core segments of their vote base.

“Were any notices given to the 65 lakh voters whose names have been deleted? Did they get a chance to appeal?” Yadav asked, accusing the Election Commission of “targeted” action and “destroying democracy”.

He further alleged the constitutional body was acting “dictatorially” and ignoring both Opposition concerns and Supreme Court recommendations.

Responding to the EC’s rebuttal, BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya posted on X (formerly Twitter): “Tejashwi Yadav’s claim that his name is missing from the electoral roll post Special Intensive Revision is false. His name appears at Serial Number 416. Please verify facts before amplifying misinformation. Deliberate attempts to mislead voters must be called out.”

The revised draft rolls, released with only months to go before the state assembly elections, are available online.

The poll body has also distributed printed district-wise copies to political party representatives to enable scrutiny during the claims and objections window.

The final rolls are expected to be published after this process concludes on September 1.