Bengal voter list glitch: Nearly all names ‘under consideration’ on EC site

A major technical glitch on the Election Commission of India (ECI) website has triggered widespread confusion in West Bengal, with nearly all voters being shown as “under consideration” when searched using their EPIC numbers — including those listed in the final electoral roll published on 28 February, the Anandabazaar.com reported.

The issue surfaced within 24 hours of the release of the first supplementary voter list, with voters across the state reporting that their status had been altered online. Even individuals whose names were confirmed in the final list are now being displayed as “under consideration,” prompting a surge of complaints to election officials.

Adding a political twist to the controversy, senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari has also been marked as “under adjudication” on the EC portal. His inclusion in the disputed category has raised fresh concerns over the accuracy of the commission’s database and intensified scrutiny of the ongoing revision process.

The commission has attributed the anomaly to a technical glitch but is yet to issue a detailed explanation. The problem emerged shortly after the publication of the first supplementary list late Monday night. While the EC confirmed the release of the list — published booth-wise and with a separate section for deleted names — it has not disclosed how many cases have been resolved or how many voters have been reinstated.

As per earlier data, the final voter list published on February 28 recorded 70.45 million voters in the state, with over 6 million marked “under consideration”. These cases are currently under review by more than 700 judicial officers, in line with directions from the Supreme Court of India and appointments made by the Calcutta High Court.

Officials had earlier indicated that around 2.9 million cases have been processed so far, though clarity remains elusive on how many voters will ultimately be retained or removed. During court proceedings, it was suggested that up to 30 per cent of the contested names could face deletion, but the EC has not confirmed any final figures.

The confusion comes against the backdrop of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which has already led to the deletion of over 6.36 million names across draft and final lists. From the draft roll of over 70.8 million voters, around 15.2 million were flagged for hearings due to issues such as “no-mapping” with the 2002 SIR or other data discrepancies. Of these, approximately 14.2 million cases have been heard, with over 8.2 million accepted after verification.

With even high-profile names now appearing as “under adjudication”, the glitch has amplified concerns about transparency and data integrity in the electoral process. The EC is under increasing pressure to resolve the technical issues swiftly and provide clear, comprehensive data on the status of voters ahead of upcoming elections.

Meanwhile, as per Supreme Court guidelines, voters whose names are ultimately struck off will have the option to appeal before tribunals constituted by the Calcutta High Court, comprising 19 former judges across 23 districts.

Scale of the revision exercise

As per data released earlier, the final electoral roll published on 28 February had 7,04,59,284 voters, with 60,06,675 names placed under adjudication.

The SIR process, initiated to verify voter details, saw large-scale scrutiny:

• Before revision: 7.66 crore voters

• Draft list: 7.08 crore voters (over 58 lakh names deleted)

• Final list (28 February): further 5.46 lakh deletions

• Total deletions: about 63.66 lakh voters

Around 1.52 crore voters were flagged for hearings, including 31.68 lakh “no-mapping” voters who could not establish linkage with the 2002 rolls, and others flagged for data discrepancies.