Jharkhand SIR faceoff: BJP agents seek to delete voters, Booth Level Officers raise red flag

Jharkhand SIR faceoff: BJP agents seek to delete voters, Booth Level Officers raise red flag In Godda, one BJP agent burns 75 forms after booth level officer asks questions; CEO notes BLO cannot refuse forms.

Key points

• 12 min read Ranchi Updated: Sep 2, 2026 05: 31 AM IST.
• Abdul Mannan Khan, Mohammad Naushad, Mohammad Shafiq, Bibi Basilan, Mohammad Aslam.
• The BLO of Maheshtikri, Anisha Bano, informed The Indian Express that a BLA of the BJP brought around 25 forms to her which were not "original".
• 9 of Maheshtikri village in Godda, for example, 25 such forms were filed against voters by one BJP BLA, Sanjeev Kumar Roshan.
• Mukhtar remarked almost all the names on the 75 forms were of Muslims, and most were mapped to the 2003 list.

Residents of Maheshtikri village in Godda district, Jharkhand, whose names were flagged for deletion from the electoral roll. After villagers learned regarding the attempt to delete their names, they approached the Block Development Office to lodge a complaint against the Booth Level Agent. (Express Photo).

Abdul Mannan Khan, Mohammad Naushad, Mohammad Shafiq, Bibi Basilan, Mohammad Aslam. As mentioned above, are from the minority community, with voter after voter in some booths in Jharkhand's Godda district, a pattern has emerged over the past month since the draft electoral roll was published on August 5 as part of the state's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) – a BJP Booth Level Agent (BLA) arrives with a stack of Form 7s seeking to delete voters who figure in the draft roll; and most of these names.

Throughout at least four booths, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have refused to accept these applications, an investigation by The Indian Express has disclosed, flagging them as not genuine or not procedurally sound. BLOs are employees of the state administration, at present headed by a JMM-Congress alliance.

SIR draft rolls see over 13 crore deletions so far, Delhi leads with 33% left out.

In practice, the Indian Express tracked down some voters targeted for deletion and discovered that not only do they trace their presence in the village for generations but numerous among them are additionally verified in the 2003 intensive revision of the rolls. Under the Election Commission's own rules, this should ease their inclusion in the ongoing SIR.

At one booth, a BLA turned up with 75 such forms and when questioned by the Booth Level Officer (BLO), he, by his own admission, promptly burned them on the spot. In one booth alone, Booth No. 9 of Maheshtikri village in Godda, for example, 25 such forms were filed against voters by one BJP BLA, Sanjeev Kumar Roshan. The Indian Express spoke to eight of these voters, and all of them expressed fears of being disenfranchised or cut off from the roster of administration schemes.

Sriman Marandi, the Block Development Officer (BDO) of Basantrai, the Godda division under which the booths fall, informed The Indian Express that, in his capacity as Electoral Registration Officer (ERO), he had received complaints from four booths – Maheshtikri, Pachua Kita, Lochni and Baghakol. An inquiry report would be submitted after a field verification, Marandi remarked, adding BLOs had been informed not to act on forms "because we did not know the source of the forms". "They (the BLAs) could have first submitted a written complaint to the SDO, or to me. Asking us to investigate, " he remarked.

Godda MLA Sanjay Prasad Yadav of the RJD remarked he has spoken to Marandi and was informed "action is being taken". Objections raised by BLOs.

Notably, the SIR exercise began in Jharkhand on June 30, with a draft list published on August 5 that saw 16.48% of the voters (around 43 lakh) deleted from the electoral rolls. The claims and objections round is at present on, and will end on September 4.

In practice, a deletion via Form 7 can be sought on a number of grounds such as absent, shifted, dead, duplicate, not Indian citizen, etc. The applicant does not need to submit any evidence but has to sign a declaration that notes: "I HEREBY DECLARE that to the best of my knowledge and belief. I am aware that making a statement or declaration which is false and which I know or believe to be false or do not believe to be true, is punishable."

Notably, the BLO of Maheshtikri, Anisha Bano, informed The Indian Express that a BLA of the BJP brought around 25 forms to her which were not "original". "The BLA remarked the forms were for those voters who are not in the village. And that 50 more such forms will be brought afterwards. All forms had Muslim voters."

She accepted the 25 forms, Bano remarked, but afterwards, BLOs were instructed by BDO Marandi that such documents were not official forms and should not be accepted. So she declined to take the rest.

Besides, Bano continued, all the voters against whom objections were raised had been mapped to the 2003 electoral roll.

In practice, a deletion via Form 7 can be sought on four grounds – Absent, Shifted, Dead or Duplicate. Pachua Kita BLO Mukhtar remarked he had been approached by a BLA with around 75 Form 7s. It were different from what they had officially received from the block office. "The BLA asked me what the form was for, and remarked he had been informed it was for adding names. I informed him that, rather, you are being produced a witness that this person's name should be deleted, " Mukhtar noted, adding that he did not accept the forms.

Mukhtar remarked almost all the names on the 75 forms were of Muslims, and most were mapped to the 2003 list. When questioned, the BLA who had tried to submit the 75 forms to him "burned all of them", he continued. 'This is our home'.

In Maheshtikri village, a number of villagers have submitted a complaint to BDO Marandi regarding mass submission of Form 7s against them in Booth No. 9.

Abdul Mannan Khan, 70, is among them. He and his family have lived in the village for generations, he remarked, and his name was in the 2003 roll. "This is our home and we are Jharkhandi too. So how can our names be deleted?" BLO Bano has assured them their names will stay, Khan remarked, but he is afraid he may lose administration benefits.

Abdul Mannan Khan, 70, remarked he and his family have lived in the village for generations. While he spent his childhood in Maheshtikri and left home only to find work as a labourer, mohammad Naushad, 50, remarked his grandparents were mapped to the 2003 electoral roll. He continues to vote in Jharkhand, Naushad remarked. "I go where I obtain work. What if our names are deleted and we do not obtain administration benefits? What if we are not considered Indian citizens?"

Mohammad Naushad's father Mohammad Shafiq, 80, remarked he, too, is a registered voter in Maheshtikri. Naushad's father Mohammad Shafiq, 80, remarked he is a registered voter in Maheshtikri as well, along with wife Bibi Basilan, 65. "I have been voting here since I turned 18. We have been here so plenty of years. We have the khatian (land proof of being a Jharkhandi), every record and paper. Now there is suddenly an obstacle."

In short, jharkhand SIR faceoff: BJP agents seek to delete voters, Booth Level Officers is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.