Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Presumed ineligible: On the Election Commission of India’s SIR process

Presumed ineligible: On the Election Commission of India’s SIR process

The Election Commission of India must end (समाप्त करना, खत्म करना) its method of deleting first and verifying later

Not one eligible (पात्र, योग्य) elector (मतदाता, निर्वाचक) should be left out of the electoral rolls (मतदाता सूची, निर्वाचक नामावली). This statement (बयान, वक्तव्य) appears (दिखाई देना, प्रकाशित होना) in nearly (लगभग, करीब-करीब) every document released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) (भारत निर्वाचन आयोग) as part of the ongoing (जारी, चल रहा) SIR process, and the Supreme Court of India, which is hearing (सुनवाई करना) petitions (याचिका, आवेदन) challenging (object to, dispute, question, contest) the SIR, has also used this refrain (a frequently repeated comment, phrase; a comment that is often repeated; comment, phrase, tag line, remark). Yet (but, nevertheless, however, still), according to (as stated by; in line with, depending on, as per, in accordance with) an ECI counter-affidavit (प्रति-शपथपत्र, जवाबी शपथपत्र) filed in the Court, by early September 2026, out of (from, among, from within, out from) more than 38 lakh appeals (petition, plea, entreaty, application) submitted to SIR appellate tribunals (a quasi-judicial body or court that hears appeals against the decisions of lower authorities or lower courts; appeals court, reviewing body, appellate court, appellate body. (A quasi-judicial body is a body, such as a tribunal, commission, or administrative authority, that is not a regular court but has certain judicial-like powers and functions, including hearing disputes and making decisions under the law. Examples in India include the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) and National Green Tribunal (NGT); the Election Commission of India (ECI) also exercises quasi-judicial functions in specified matters). (“quasi” meaning “as if” or “seemingly”)) in West Bengal, just (barely, only; merely, simply, strictly, no more than) over (above, beyond, exceeding, upward of) 1,22,000 appeals were disposed of (a disposal rate of just 3.2%) and 1,13,943 electors were added back to the rolls (an inclusion rate of nearly 93%). This suggests (indicate, point to, imply, signal) that the claims/corrections phase (the specific period during an electoral revision process when citizens can officially apply to add their names or modify their details on the voter list; verification stage, objection period, revision phase) in the West Bengal SIR — during which (in the time of a particular event; in which time, while, in the period of) judicial officers (an individual with the authority to hear and decide legal matters, or someone presiding over a court or tribunal; judge, magistrate, adjudicator, jurist) deployed (to bring into effective action or position (often for a specific task); station, position, utilize, post) for verification deemed (to regard or consider in a specified way; consider, judge, regard, view) 27 lakh of the 60 lakh electors flagged (to draw attention to something, usually an error or a problem; mark, indicate, point out, highlight) for “logical discrepancies” to be ineligible (अपात्र, अयोग्य) — was deeply (profoundly, intensely, extremely, greatly) flawed (defective, faulty, imperfect, erroneous). More than 22 lakh of those found ineligible have since appealed (to apply to a higher court or authority for a reversal of the decision of a lower court; contest, challenge, petition, litigate), and ECI data show that more than nine in 10 cases decided by the tribunals (a body established to settle certain types of dispute or to adjudicate on a particular matter; board, panel, court, committee) have ended with (to have something as a final result or conclusion; result in, finish with, culminate in, wind up with) the electors back on the rolls (list, register). If these “inclusion” and “disposal” rates hold (to remain valid, true, or applicable; stand, remain true, apply, be valid), the majority of the 27 lakh electors should not have been ineligible in the first place (as the original or initial matter; to begin with, originally, initially, at the outset) and are now struggling to get back (return, revert, go back, arrive back) on the rolls — an indication that massive disenfranchisement (the state of being deprived of a right or privilege, especially the right to vote; deprivation, marginalization, exclusion, suppression) preceded (to happen or come before something in time; antedate, come before, go in advance of, lead up to) the West Bengal Assembly polls. With municipal elections (an election held to choose local government officials, such as mayors and city councillors; civic election, local poll, local election, civic poll) in the State approaching, the ECI must speed up (accelerate, expedite, quicken, hasten) the appellate (concerned with or dealing with applications for decisions to be reversed (appeals); judicial, appeal-related) process and restore (to bring back or re-establish something; reinstate, re-establish, put back, bring back) eligible electors to the rolls.

In Phase 3 of the SIR, The Hindu’s analysis found that in 24 out of Delhi’s 70 constituencies (a geographical area that an elected official represents; electoral district, voting area, ward), the draft roll (a preliminary version of the voter list that is published for public review and for inviting claims and objections before finalisation; preliminary register, provisional voter list) now records (document, register, log) fewer electors than those who voted in the February 2025 Assembly (a Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha), the lower house (in states with bicameral legislature) or the sole house of the state legislature in India) election. Such large-scale (widespread, extensive, massive, sweeping) deletion (removal, expunging, cancellation, elimination) cannot hold unless (except if (used to introduce the case in which a statement being made is not true); except if, if not, save, short of) there was a major migration (movement of people from one place to another; relocation, movement, shifting, resettlement) process in the capital region or large numbers of voters were never ordinarily (customarily, typically, generally) resident in Delhi. A more plausible (seeming reasonable or probable; credible, reasonable, believable, likely) answer is that the enumeration (the official counting or listing of people, especially for electoral or census rolls; counting, listing, cataloging, census taking) itself has struck off actual voters. The process puts the onus of proving eligibility on the elector, and the ECI’s dropping (deliver, leave, or deposit something at a particular location; deliver, leave, deposit, distribute) of enumeration forms (an official document or questionnaire used by enumerators during a door-to-door survey or revision to collect data or verify voter details; survey form, data collection sheet, census form, verification document) at homes has not translated into (result in, convert into, turn into, change into) full enumeration. Requiring electors to link themselves to rolls drawn (prepare or create a record, list, or document; prepare, compile, produce, formulate) in the early 2000s then manufactures “discrepancies” even when documents are valid. In Delhi, this “mapping (the operation of associating or matching one set of data with another, here linking voters’ details with family members or previous rolls; associating, matching, connecting, correlating)” has put 13.79 lakh electors under notice with a further 19.33 lakh flagged for “logical discrepancies” on undefined (not clear or not precisely described; vague, unspecified, unclear, ambiguous) grounds (a reason, cause, or argument used to justify an action; basis, reason, cause, foundation). While hearing the Bihar SIR petitions, the Court had intervened (to get involved in a situation to alter or prevent an action; step in, intercede, interfere, mediate) sharply (severely, strictly, sternly, critically) to stop eligible voters from being struck off. Its permissiveness (leniency, tolerance, laxity, indulgence) in the year since, towards (in relation to; regarding, with respect to, concerning, about) an insouciant (showing a casual lack of concern or indifference; unconcerned, indifferent, nonchalant, casual) ECI has allowed disenfranchisement on a scale (to a degree, in magnitude, extensively, widely) that will remain a black mark (a record or instance of failure, misconduct, or fault; stain, blemish, stigma, smear) on the jurisprudence (legal system, legal precedent, laws, legal theory) of universal adult franchise (the right of all adult citizens to vote in elections, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or any other restriction, enshrined in Article 326 of the Indian Constitution) in India. As the Court hears petitions on Delhi and West Bengal, it must compel (to force or oblige someone to do something; force, coerce, pressure, oblige) the ECI to reverse course (to change direction or alter a previous policy or decision completely; backtrack, turn around, change direction, do a U-turn).

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.ineligible (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - अपात्र, अयोग्य
English Meaning - unqualified, disqualified, unentitled, unsuitable, barred, excluded, unfit.

2.Election Commission of India (ECI) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - भारत निर्वाचन आयोग
English Meaning - an autonomous constitutional authority responsible for administering election processes in India, established in 1950 under Article 324 of the Constitution.

3.counter-affidavit (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रति-शपथपत्र, जवाबी शपथपत्र
English Meaning - an affidavit filed by the opposing party (the respondent or defendant) in a legal case, contradicting the claims made in the petitioner’s affidavit; written response, rebuttal, formal reply, counter-statement.

4.nearly (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - लगभग, करीब-करीब
English Meaning - practically, virtually, almost, approximately.

5.end (verb)

Hindi Meaning - समाप्त करना, खत्म करना
English Meaning - terminate, conclude, stop, finish.

6.eligible (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - पात्र, योग्य
English Meaning - qualified, entitled, allowed, permitted, admissible.

7.elector (noun)

Hindi Meaning - मतदाता, निर्वाचक
English Meaning - voter, enfranchised citizen.

8.leave out (phrasal verb)

Hindi Meaning - छोड़ देना, बाहर रखना
English Meaning - exclude, omit, drop, miss out, overlook.

9.electoral roll (noun)

Hindi Meaning - मतदाता सूची, निर्वाचक नामावली
English Meaning - voter list, register of voters, electoral register, voting list.

10.statement (noun)

Hindi Meaning - बयान, वक्तव्य
English Meaning - declaration, announcement, assertion, pronouncement.

11.appear (verb)

Hindi Meaning - दिखाई देना, प्रकाशित होना
English Meaning - to become visible or be published; feature, show up, manifest, surface.

12.ongoing (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - जारी, चल रहा
English Meaning - continuing; still in progress; continuous, happening, proceeding, underway.

13.Special Intensive Revision (SIR) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - विशेष गहन पुनरीक्षण
English Meaning - an official process undertaken by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to comprehensively update and revise electoral rolls, specifically targeting the inclusion of newly eligible voters, removal of ineligible names, and correction of existing details before elections.

14.hear (verb)

Hindi Meaning - सुनवाई करना
English Meaning - to listen to and judge a case or a petition in a court of law; try, judge, adjudicate, review.

15.petition (noun)

Hindi Meaning - याचिका, आवेदन
English Meaning - appeal, request, application, plea.

16.challenge (verb)

English Meaning - object to, dispute, question, contest.

17.presumed (adjective)

English Meaning - believed to be the case without having been conclusively established (proved); supposed, possible, inferred, assumed.

18.yet (conjunction)

English Meaning - but, nevertheless, however, still.

19.according to (phrase)

English Meaning - as stated by; in line with, depending on, as per, in accordance with.

20.presume (verb)

English Meaning - suppose, assume, believe, deduce.

21.refrain (noun)

English Meaning - a frequently repeated comment, phrase; a comment that is often repeated; comment, phrase, tag line, remark.

22.affidavit (noun)

English Meaning - a voluntary, written statement of facts made by a person (called the deponent or affiant) under oath; sworn statement, declaration, sworn declaration, written testimony.

23.out of (phrase)

English Meaning - from, among, from within, out from.

24.more than (phrase)

English Meaning - over, above, in excess of, beyond.

25.appeal (noun)

English Meaning - petition, plea, entreaty, application.

26.appellate tribunal (noun)

English Meaning - a quasi-judicial body or court that hears appeals against the decisions of lower authorities or lower courts; appeals court, reviewing body, appellate court, appellate body. (A quasi-judicial body is a body, such as a tribunal, commission, or administrative authority, that is not a regular court but has certain judicial-like powers and functions, including hearing disputes and making decisions under the law. Examples in India include the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) and National Green Tribunal (NGT); the Election Commission of India (ECI) also exercises quasi-judicial functions in specified matters). (“quasi” meaning “as if” or “seemingly”).

27.just (adverb)

English Meaning - barely, only; merely, simply, strictly, no more than.

28.over (preposition)

English Meaning - above, beyond, exceeding, upward of.

29.dispose of (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to settle or conclude (a matter or a legal case); resolve, settle, conclude, finish with.

30.disposal (noun)

English Meaning - the process of dealing with or settling a matter (like an appeal); settlement, resolution, clearing, conclusion.

31.add back (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - reinstate, restore, put back, include again.

32.suggest (verb)

English Meaning - indicate, point to, imply, signal.

33.claims/corrections phase (noun)

English Meaning - the specific period during an electoral revision process when citizens can officially apply to add their names or modify their details on the voter list; verification stage, objection period, revision phase.

34.during which (phrase)

English Meaning - in the time of a particular event; in which time, while, in the period of.

35.judicial officer (noun)

English Meaning - an individual with the authority to hear and decide legal matters, or someone presiding over a court or tribunal; judge, magistrate, adjudicator, jurist.

36.deploy (verb)

English Meaning - to bring into effective action or position (often for a specific task); station, position, utilize, post.

37.deem (verb)

English Meaning - to regard or consider in a specified way; consider, judge, regard, view.

38.flag (verb)

English Meaning - to draw attention to something, usually an error or a problem; mark, indicate, point out, highlight.

39.logical discrepancy (noun)

English Meaning - an illogical difference or inconsistency between facts or pieces of information that should match; inconsistency, anomaly, irregularity, contradiction.

40.deeply (adverb)

English Meaning - profoundly, intensely, extremely, greatly.

41.flawed (adjective)

English Meaning - defective, faulty, imperfect, erroneous.

42.appeal (verb)

English Meaning - to apply to a higher court or authority for a reversal of the decision of a lower court; contest, challenge, petition, litigate.

43.tribunal (noun)

English Meaning - a body established to settle certain types of dispute or to adjudicate on a particular matter; board, panel, court, committee.

44.end with (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to have something as a final result or conclusion; result in, finish with, culminate in, wind up with.

45.roll (noun)

English Meaning - list, register.

46.hold (verb)

English Meaning - to remain valid, true, or applicable; stand, remain true, apply, be valid.

47.in the first place (phrase)

English Meaning - as the original or initial matter; to begin with, originally, initially, at the outset.

48.get back (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - return, revert, go back, arrive back.

49.disenfranchisement (noun)

English Meaning - the state of being deprived of a right or privilege, especially the right to vote; deprivation, marginalization, exclusion, suppression.

50.precede (verb)

English Meaning - to happen or come before something in time; antedate, come before, go in advance of, lead up to.

51.municipal election (noun)

English Meaning - an election held to choose local government officials, such as mayors and city councillors; civic election, local poll, local election, civic poll.

52.speed up (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - accelerate, expedite, quicken, hasten.

53.appellate (adjective)

English Meaning - concerned with or dealing with applications for decisions to be reversed (appeals); judicial, appeal-related.

54.restore (verb)

English Meaning - to bring back or re-establish something; reinstate, re-establish, put back, bring back.

55.constituency (noun)

English Meaning - a geographical area that an elected official represents; electoral district, voting area, ward.

56.draft roll (noun)

English Meaning - a preliminary version of the voter list that is published for public review and for inviting claims and objections before finalisation; preliminary register, provisional voter list.

57.record (verb)

English Meaning - document, register, log.

58.Assembly (noun)

English Meaning - a Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha), the lower house (in states with bicameral legislature) or the sole house of the state legislature in India.

59.large-scale (adjective)

English Meaning - widespread, extensive, massive, sweeping.

60.deletion (noun)

English Meaning - removal, expunging, cancellation, elimination.

61.unless (conjunction)

English Meaning - except if (used to introduce the case in which a statement being made is not true); except if, if not, save, short of.

62.migration (noun)

English Meaning - movement of people from one place to another; relocation, movement, shifting, resettlement.

63.ordinarily (adverb)

English Meaning - customarily, typically, generally.

64.plausible (adjective)

English Meaning - seeming reasonable or probable; credible, reasonable, believable, likely.

65.enumeration (noun)

English Meaning - the official counting or listing of people, especially for electoral or census rolls; counting, listing, cataloging, census taking.

66.strike off (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to remove a name from an official list or register; remove, delete, erase, cancel.

67.put the onus of (phrase)

English Meaning - to place the responsibility or duty on someone; place the burden of, make someone responsible for, charge with.

68.drop (verb)

English Meaning - deliver, leave, or deposit something at a particular location; deliver, leave, deposit, distribute.

69.enumeration form (noun)

English Meaning - an official document or questionnaire used by enumerators during a door-to-door survey or revision to collect data or verify voter details; survey form, data collection sheet, census form, verification document.

70.translate into (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - result in, convert into, turn into, change into.

71.draw (verb)

English Meaning - prepare or create a record, list, or document; prepare, compile, produce, formulate.

72.mapping (noun)

English Meaning - the operation of associating or matching one set of data with another, here linking voters’ details with family members or previous rolls; associating, matching, connecting, correlating.

73.put someone under notice (OR) put someone on notice (phrase)

English Meaning - formally warn someone that they are required to take action or that a specified consequence may follow; formally warn, notify, caution, place on notice.

74.undefined (adjective)

English Meaning - not clear or not precisely described; vague, unspecified, unclear, ambiguous.

75.ground (noun)

English Meaning - a reason, cause, or argument used to justify an action; basis, reason, cause, foundation.

76.intervene (verb)

English Meaning - to get involved in a situation to alter or prevent an action; step in, intercede, interfere, mediate.

77.sharply (adverb)

English Meaning - severely, strictly, sternly, critically.

78.permissiveness (noun)

English Meaning - leniency, tolerance, laxity, indulgence.

79.towards (preposition)

English Meaning - in relation to; regarding, with respect to, concerning, about.

80.insouciant (adjective)

English Meaning - showing a casual lack of concern or indifference; unconcerned, indifferent, nonchalant, casual.

81.on a scale (phrase)

English Meaning - to a degree, in magnitude, extensively, widely.

82.black mark (phrase)

English Meaning - a record or instance of failure, misconduct, or fault; stain, blemish, stigma, smear.

83.jurisprudence (noun)

English Meaning - legal system, legal precedent, laws, legal theory.

84.universal adult franchise (noun)

English Meaning - the right of all adult citizens to vote in elections, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or any other restriction, enshrined in Article 326 of the Indian Constitution.

85.compel (verb)

English Meaning - to force or oblige someone to do something; force, coerce, pressure, oblige.

86.reverse course (phrase)

English Meaning - to change direction or alter a previous policy or decision completely; backtrack, turn around, change direction, do a U-turn.