Overview
- The Election Commission appointed five Special Roll Observers—Kumar Ravi Kant Singh (Presidency), Niraj Kumar Bansod (Medinipur), Krishna Kumar Nirala (Burdwan), Alok Tiwari (Malda) and Pankaj Yadav (Jalpaiguri)—to supervise West Bengal’s SIR.
- The Commission is weighing micro observers for the claims–objections stage after the draft rolls are published on December 16, with existing observers briefed in New Delhi on next steps.
- West Bengal’s CEO office reports 56.37 lakh electors marked uncollectible—23.98 lakh deceased, 19.65 lakh shifted, 10.95 lakh untraceable and 1.32 lakh duplicates—likely to be excluded from the draft; final rolls are due February 14, 2026.
- A new ‘Duplicate Elector Verification’ feature in the BLO mobile app enables detection of multiple voter IDs and triggers on‑site verification and written declarations from flagged voters.
- Local conduct is under review in Baruipur, where two BLOs face potential action after reports of proxy work and a removed officer’s signature appearing on later forms.