Election commission extends voter list deadline in 6 states including UP, giving citizens another chance to register
New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): The Election Commission has given a big relief to the citizens who want to add or correct their names in the voter list. The Commission has extended the deadline for 'Special Intensive Revision' (SIR) in six states including Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. According to the new schedule released on Thursday, this deadline which was ending on December 11 has now been extended on the demand of the Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of the states. This decision will benefit crores of voters of Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The biggest relief has been received by the residents of Uttar Pradesh, where the SIR process will now continue until December 26th. This means that UP voters have an additional 15 days to submit documents and get their names included in the voter list. According to the new schedule, the revised enumeration work in UP will continue until Friday, December 26th, and after this, the draft voter list will be published on December 31st. The Commission has clarified that after all the procedures, the final publication of the voter list will be on February 28th, 2026.
According to the Commission's revised schedule, dates have been changed in other states as well. In Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the revised enumeration will now continue until December 18, with publication scheduled for December 23. Meanwhile, residents of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have been given until December 14, with voter lists scheduled to be published on December 19. Earlier, on November 30, the Commission had extended the schedule by a week in 12 states to ensure complete revision of voter lists before the upcoming elections.
The main objective behind extending the deadline is to ensure that the voter list is completely error-free. Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa had specifically requested the Commission to give district election officers more time to verify dead, migrated, and missing voters. According to data, approximately 18.8 million entries in Uttar Pradesh are still in the "unconfirmed" category, including 12.7 million voters who have permanently shifted their location and approximately 4.6 million who have died. The Commission aims to prepare a completely accurate voter list by settling claims and objections between December 31, 2025, and February 21, 2026.