ECI Defends Bihar Voter List Revision and Announces Major Poll Reforms Amid Claims of Widespread Electoral Manipulation ‘Smokescreen’

ECI Defends Bihar Voter List Revision and Announces Major Poll Reforms Amid Claims of Widespread Electoral Manipulation ‘Smokescreen’

Due to the main opposition party, Congress (led by Rahul Gandhi), being described as very weak, Modi and BJP are expected to keep winning elections “at will”.

By Rakesh Raman
New Delhi | October 5, 2025

NEW DELHI, October 5, 2025—The Election Commission of India (ECI) has forcefully defended its process for revising the voter list in Bihar, announcing a series of new election reforms, even as critics allege that these preparations merely serve as a distraction from deeper electoral manipulation, which they term a “Smokescreen.”

Election Commission Defends Voter List Revision and Announces Reforms

Addressing the media on Sunday, October 5, 2025, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar stated that the voter list revision process in Bihar was carried out strictly under the law and transparently. This defense followed allegations made by Congress which accused the ECI of acting under the influence of the ruling BJP and alleged large-scale irregularities in the final electoral roll released after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

CEC Kumar clarified that the Representation of the People Act mandates revision of the electoral roll before elections. He stated that the SIR process was completed successfully on September 1, and that the SIR was welcomed by 7 crore 42 lakh voters. Kumar thanked the 90,217 booth-level officers (BLOs) of Bihar for their “exemplary” work in cleansing the voter list. He emphasized that political parties retain the freedom to raise claims and objections, even if they were not prevalent during the initial process.

The ECI announced several new measures for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections:

• Transparency Measures: A one-stop digital platform will be introduced, and 100 percent webcasting will be implemented at every polling station.
• Booth Capacity: Each booth will now be limited to a maximum of 1,200 voters.
• EVM Changes: Ballot papers on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), which were previously black and white, will now feature colorful serial numbers and candidate photos for easier identification.
• Counting Rules: Postal ballots will be counted before the first two rounds of EVM counting.
• Voter Access and Identification: Candidates will be allowed to deploy their agents within 100 meters of the booth. Voters will be required to deposit their mobile phones outside the polling rooms before casting their votes.
• Aadhaar Clarification: CEC Kumar clarified that Aadhaar is optional for voter identification and cannot be treated as proof of citizenship or residence, aligning with the Supreme Court’s order.

Modi’s Financial Scheme Allegedly Masks Manipulation

Despite the ECI’s efforts to demonstrate transparency, critics maintain that the electoral preparation environment is tainted by systemic manipulation, claiming that the ECI, which operates under the Modi government, is mostly alleged to be complicit in these crimes.

This view is reinforced by the controversy surrounding a recent financial initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On Friday, September 26, Modi reportedly launched the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana for Bihar, a scheme valued at Rs 7,500 crore. The initiative involved transferring Rs 10,000 each to the bank accounts of 75 lakh women in the state and promises additional support of up to Rs 2 lakh for entrepreneurial skill enhancement.

However, critics allege that this financial initiative is only a “Smokescreen” behind which Modi and the BJP plan to secure election victories through alleged electoral manipulation. Critics contend that after allegedly winning the Assembly election fraudulently in Bihar, Modi and BJP will claim victory due to the financial help announced to women, but election manipulation will actually help them win.

Allegations of Widespread Fraud and ‘Action Replay’

Sources claim that the Modi-led alliance is expected to win the Bihar election as usual with EVM manipulation, which is alleged to have occurred in states like Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Delhi.

The alleged ongoing frauds reported include: manipulating Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), creating false voter rolls, engaging in vote-buying, intimidating voters, utilizing fake voters, and conducting misinformation campaigns.

This strategy is seen as an “action replay” of “Modi’s guarantee” in Delhi. Although it is alleged that Modi and the BJP won the 2025 Delhi election by means of false voting and EVM frauds, reports claim the promised money (Rs. 2,500 per month) was never distributed to women there, leading Delhi women to label Modi a liar.

These alleged tactics are detailed in the recent political research report, “Unveiling the Smokescreen of Indian Democracy: Fabricated Factors Masking Electoral Manipulation,” which claims that the Modi-led BJP’s electoral dominance relies on fabricated factors that mask underlying manipulation.

As a result of elections allegedly not being fair and transparent, nearly 1.4 billion Indians are reported to be suffering under the Modi regime, grappling with unprecedented poverty, corruption, inflation, unemployment, lawlessness, and religious animosity.

These serious allegations have prompted a worldwide Call to Filmmakers to produce a global political thriller titled “The Smokescreen”. Due to the main opposition party, Congress (led by Rahul Gandhi), being described as very weak, Modi and BJP are expected to keep winning elections “at will”.

By Rakesh Raman, who is a national award-winning journalist and social activist. He is the founder of a humanitarian organization RMN Foundation which is working in diverse areas to help the disadvantaged and distressed people in the society.

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