Mizoram parties call for removal of names without 2005 SIR linkage

Aizawl, Jul 7 (PTI): Political parties in Mizoram on Tuesday called for deletion of names from the draft electoral rolls under the ongoing SIR if they have no linkage with the 2005 records. The resolution was adopted during an all-party meeting held here, where political leaders reviewed the progress of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026 exercise. In a joint resolution, the parties said that entries marked under the 'No linkage with last SIR' category should be deleted from the draft electoral rolls wherever the classification is found to be valid. The meeting also urged that all entries carrying remarks or appearing doubtful be subjected to careful verification in coordination with civil society organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to ensure the accuracy of the electoral rolls. Political parties also resolved to maintain close coordination and work collectively throughout the SIR 2026 exercise to facilitate its smooth implementation. The resolution also endorsed the role played by NGOs in the ongoing revision process, expressing full support for their efforts. Earlier, Chief Electoral Officer Garima Gupta had said enumeration forms of 46,163 voters, or 5.28 per cent of the total electorate in 2025, could not be collected during the SIR exercise conducted between May 30 and June 28. Of these, 21,295 electors (2.43 per cent) were found to have died, 13,978 (1.60 per cent) had permanently shifted probably to other states or foreign countries, 8,333 (0.95 per cent) were untraceable or absent despite repeated visits, and 2,248 (0.26 per cent) were already enrolled elsewhere, she had said. Additionally, 309 voters, whose names have appeared in the last rolls (2025), refused to be enrolled during the SIR on religious grounds, the CEO had said. According to officials, 8,75,068 enumeration forms were distributed, of which 8,28,906 were collected and digitised, making Mizoram the first among the 16 states undertaking the third phase of SIR to achieve 100 per cent digitisation of collected forms. The draft electoral rolls published on July 4 contain 8,28,906 electors, including 4,29,881 women voters. Aizawl district has the highest number of voters at over 2.72 lakh, followed by two southern districts- Lunglei (98,808 voters), and Lawngtlai (90,699). With 15,443 electors, Hnahthial district, created in 2019, has the least number. The final electoral rolls will be published on September 6, they said. PTI CORR MNB