Itanagar, May 19: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Pawan Kumar Sain on Tuesday convened a State-level coordination meeting with representatives of various political parties at Nirvachan Bhawan here to review preparedness for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls in the State.
The meeting was attended by Joint Chief Electoral Officer Liken Koyu and Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Shania Kayem Mize, along with representatives from the BJP, Congress, PPA and NPP.
Addressing the meeting, the CEO explained the necessity of conducting the SIR exercise, stating that intensive revision of electoral rolls had not been undertaken in the State for nearly two decades. He informed that the Election Commission of India had announced the Special Intensive Revision of Electoral Rolls in Arunachal Pradesh through a notification issued on May 14, 2026.
He said the exercise had become necessary due to significant changes in the electoral rolls over the years, rapid urbanization and migration, concerns regarding duplicate and repeated entries, and the need to remove deceased and foreign electors.
Referring to the appointment of Booth Level Agents (BLAs), the CEO expressed concern over the low slow pace of BLA appointments. He reiterated that political parties play a crucial role in the purification of electoral rolls and urged all parties to appoint BLAs for every polling station to ensure smooth conduct of the revision exercise.
He informed that Arunachal Pradesh currently has 2,288 polling stations. As per the latest figures shared during the meeting, BJP has appointed 2,286 BLAs, Congress 422, PPA 239, NPP 100, NCP 43 and NCP(A) 41, taking the total number of BLAs appointed thus far to 3,131.
Joint CEO Liken Koyu made a detailed PowerPoint presentation on the SIR process, covering training of election personnel, distribution of enumeration forms, rationalization of polling stations, publication of draft and final electoral rolls, claims and objections, verification procedures and required documents.
Clarifying queries related to Aadhaar, officials informed that Aadhaar serves only as proof of identity and does not confer proof of citizenship or domicile under the provisions of the Aadhaar Act, 2016.
The meeting also discussed provisions relating to electoral roll revision under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, Article 326 of the Constitution regarding voter eligibility, and relevant provisions of the Citizenship Act, 1955.
The CEO further cautioned that any person making false declarations in connection with electoral rolls would be liable for punishment under the Representation of the People Act, 1950, including imprisonment up to one year, fine, or both.
Political parties were also urged to direct their district-level representatives to actively participate in meetings convened by District Election Officers and Electoral Registration Officers during the course of the revision process.