The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday ordered a special summary revision of electoral rolls in 17 states and Union territories, the first such exercise in nearly two years that is expected to not only help Gen Z and first-time voters but also those deleted by the controversial special intensive revision .
This was part of a slew of changes announced by ECI to SSR , which also included greater sharing of data on additions, deletions and modifications to the roll. ECI also announced a string of changes in how SSR will be conducted, directing electoral registration officers to provide recognised political parties with two copies of the draft and final electoral rolls for each polling station. “SSR provides a structured opportunity for newly eligible citizens to enter the electoral process. This includes one hard copy and one soft copy in a readable PDF format. These include Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Delhi, Odisha, Sikkim, Tripura and Telangana.
The SSR – which will be conducted between November 2 and December 28, with the final roll published on January 4, 2027 – will also provide political parties with machine-readable PDFs of the draft and final electoral roll, fulfilling a longstanding demand of opposition parties. “The commission has issued instructions dated 29.09.2026 to undertake a special drive for the enrolment of left out/young/first time eligible electors. Now, in order to facilitate the enrolment of eligible electors with reference to the qualifying date of 1st January, 2027 along with seeking advance applications for the three subsequent qualifying dates of 1st April, 1st July & 1st October, 2027, the commission hereby directs that the existing electoral rolls shall be revised by conducting a Special Summary Revision (SSR),” ECI said in a letter to chief electoral officers of 17 regions. Unlike existing voters, who may already have their names on the electoral roll, young citizens turning 18 depend on timely and accessible registration mechanisms to exercise their democratic rights.
Transparency activist Anjali Bhardwaj said that the SSR is particularly significant for first-time voters. Any delay in SSR risks creating an administrative gap for this group,” she said. The Commission said the SSR schedule for 17 other states and UTs will be announced later, since SIR was “going on or has just been completed” there.
The digital copies will not contain voters’ photographs. They had alleged manipulations and duplications in the electoral rolls. The changes address several key concerns raised by the Opposition over the past two years, including in June 2025, when Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge demanded consolidated, digital and machine-readable voter rolls for the 2024 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra assembly elections, along with version histories and timestamps showing changes to the rolls.
“ERO, immediately after draft and final publication, in accordance with Rule 11(c) & 22 (c) of the Registration of the Electors Rule, 1960 (RER, 1960), shall supply free of cost two copies (one hard copy & one soft copy in readable PDF format) of each separate polling station to every recognised political party,” the poll body said.
Now that they stand completely exposed after repeated vote chori and SIR, they are willing to concede this demand in a desperate attempt to create the illusion of electoral reform by pushing through piecemeal changes.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said that the decision has come too late. The ultimate goal is to silence the Opposition,” he told HT.
“Earlier when Rahul Gandhi demanded machine-readable voter rolls, the CEC, the BJP, and its troll machinery ridiculed the demand.
