The final voters’ list in West Bengal, set to be released on February 28, will introduce two additional categories: “under adjudication” and “deleted,” in addition to the existing genuine voters. This categorization will classify the names in the list under three distinct categories. Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal explained that the “under adjudication” group will consist of voters whose identity verification is still under review by specially appointed judicial officers, as mandated by the Supreme Court.
Supplementary lists will follow, featuring the names of voters from the “under adjudication” category once their verification is completed through judicial adjudication. The third category in the final voters’ list will comprise individuals excluded during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process initiated in November last year. These excluded voters will be listed under the “deleted” category in the final voters’ list, as stated by Agarwal. The introduction of these categories aims to enhance transparency within the electoral system and inform voters about their status.
The CEO’s office sources highlighted that the delineation into these three categories is intended to ensure transparency and keep voters informed about their standing. However, a final decision is pending regarding voters categorized under “logical discrepancy,” denoting cases where irregular family-tree data was identified during the “progeny mapping” process. West Bengal had 7.66 crore voters during the SIR announcement, with over 58 lakh names removed, including deceased, absent, duplicate, or missing individuals. The draft list from December last year recorded 7.08 crore voters, raising anticipation for the fate of those identified under the “logical discrepancy” category.
