Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said that SR exercise was successful in Assam, with only 500 people from across all districts in the State have submitted appeals for inclusion of their names or exclusion of others. File
| Photo Credit: ANI
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Wednesday (February 18, 2026) said that the Special Revision (SR) of electoral rolls was designed for poll-bound Assam to include eligible voters and exclude those who are not eligible.
The Election Commission of India (ECI), he said, had considered the earlier exercise to update the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam in its decision to prescribe the Special Revision for the State, instead of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) conducted simultaneously in 12 other States.
‘Only 500 appeals’
Addressing journalists at an upscale hotel in Guwahati, Mr. Kumar countered allegations that the voters’ list was being manipulated through the Special Revision.
“If the name of any eligible voter did not make it to the electoral roll, the person can fill up Form 6. If the person is found ineligible even after filling up the form, he or she can appeal to the District Magistrate,” he said.
“I am happy to tell you that out of 2.5 crore voters, only 500 appeals have been received across the districts so far. This means our BLOs, AEROs, and EROs did a good job,” he said, referring to poll officials at the block and district level.
Poll date factors
The ECI will consider the appeals of Assam’s political parties to conduct a single-phase Assembly election before the mid-April Rongali Bihu festival. “We will decide on the phases after discussing several factors, but I assure you that the decision will be for the convenience of the people,” Mr. Kumar said.
Outlining new initiatives, Mr. Kumar said there would be 100% webcasting in the State for the first time, adding that voters will be allowed to carry their mobile phones and place them at a designated spot in the polling station before casting their vote.
“We have capped the number of voters per polling station at 1,200 for ease of voting and completion of the process in time,” he said.
Poll preparedness review
During the review of poll preparedness, the ECI instructed all election-related officials to enforce the rule of law strictly without fear or favour, and to make polling stations festive for a pleasant voting experience.
Assam has 2,49,58,139 voters — 1,24,82,213 men, 1,24,75,583 women, and 343 third-gender voters. Of the total voters, 2,03,709 are persons with disabilities, and 2,586 are centenarians.
The State has 31,486 polling stations, of which 27,711 are in rural areas, and 3,775 in urban areas.
Published – February 18, 2026 05:45 pm IST
