EC orders Special Revision of electoral rolls in Assam with Jan 1, 2026 cut-off

New Delhi, Nov 17: The Election Commission on Monday ordered 'Special Revision' of electoral rolls in Assam and the final voters' list will be published on February 10, 2026.

According to instructions issued by the poll panel for the chief electoral officer of Assam, January 1, 2026, will be the qualifying date for the state to carry out the Special Revision.

Officials said that the Special Revision stands somewhere between the annual special summary revision and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

"It is in a way an upgrade of special summary revision ... instead of enumeration forms, booth-level officers will verify electors on a pre-filled register," a senior functionary explained.

Welcoming the move, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the exercise would help ensure “clean, updated and accurate electoral rolls for all eligible citizens”.

“The Government of Assam welcomes the Election Commission of India’s decision to undertake a Special Revision of the electoral roll with 01.01.2026 as the qualifying date… Assam will extend full cooperation to the @ECISVEEP to complete the revision in a transparent and time-bound manner,” he wrote on a micro-blogging platform.

Last month, while announcing SIR for states and Union Territories including Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Puducherry, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep, the Election Commission had said that Assam would receive separate instructions, as Assembly polls are also due in the state in 2026.

The omission sparked questions since Assam is among the states headed for elections next year.

However, the Election Commission of India clarified that Assam’s exclusion was due to its unique legal and procedural circumstances tied to the citizenship framework and the Supreme Court-monitored National Register of Citizens (NRC) process.

Assam functions under a distinct legal structure defined by Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955, a provision arising from the 1985 Assam Accord, which recognises the state’s special context in determining citizenship for individuals who entered between 1966 and 1971.

Because of this framework, the EC’s nationwide SIR order did not automatically extend to Assam.

Instead, on October 28, the Commission said the state would receive separate directions for voter list revision once the ongoing citizenship verification process concludes.

With inputs from PTI