In a letter dated Sept 24, Maharashtra chief electoral officer (CEO) S Chockalingam had sought permission to accept equivalent documents to establish electors’ claims, particularly where discrepancies arose while mapping records to the previous SIR electoral roll
In a letter dated Sept 24, he had sought permission to accept equivalent documents to establish electors’ claims, particularly where discrepancies arose while mapping records to the previous SIR electoral roll. Notices have been issued to 1.22 crore electors across the state over unmapped records and logical discrepancies. Special camps will be held at polling stations across Maharashtra on Oct 10 and 11 to assist first-time voters, including individuals who turned 18 on or before Oct 1, 2026, and other eligible citizens omitted from the draft roll. Eligible citizens can submit Form 6, along with the prescribed declaration and supporting documents, to their ERO, Assistant Electoral Registration Officer, or BLO.
Under the newly updated provision, citizens who lack the exact documents specified in their notices can submit alternative valid supporting evidence for consideration by their local ERO.
ECI has accepted a proposal by Maharashtra chief electoral officer (CEO) S Chockalingam to allow alternative documentation, according to state election officials. An option to upload an “other/other equivalent document” has now been integrated into the booth level officer (BLO) mobile application. “They have accepted my request and it is being implemented in the BLO app,” Chockalingam told TOI .
The proposal explicitly highlighted the difficulties faced by particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs), homeless individuals, and commercial sex workers, who frequently do not possess items from the standard prescribed list. Further, the CEO’s proposal referenced a submission made by ECI counsel before Supreme Court in the Delhi SIR case. In that case, the counsel clarified that the prescribed list was not exhaustive and that any convincing evidence could be presented to the authorities—citing a sibling’s birth certificate as potentially sufficient evidence to resolve an age discrepancy. Applications can also be filed online via the official portal at voters.eci.gov.in.
In an interview with TOI, Chockalingam stated that he had held detailed discussions with ECI before the proposal was formally accepted. Meanwhile, the state CEO’s office has urged eligible citizens whose names are missing from the draft roll to apply for inclusion before the final electoral roll is published.