Aizawl: Mizoram’s largest civil society organisation, the Young Mizo Association (YMA), on Monday called for heightened vigilance during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026 of electoral rolls, urging election authorities to ensure that only eligible citizens are included while preventing the enrolment of ineligible persons.
The appeal was made during a coordination meeting between YMA leaders and election officials in Mamit. The meeting, chaired by Mamit Election Officer Lalnunfela Chawngthu, was attended by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) from the district’s three Assembly constituencies and an 11-member YMA delegation led by Central YMA general secretary Malsawmliana.
Addressing the meeting, Malsawmliana described the SIR 2026 exercise as a matter of “utmost importance”, noting that similar revision exercises in other states had reportedly resulted in the deletion of lakhs of names from electoral rolls.
He urged YMA branch leaders to cooperate fully with election officials throughout the verification process and said the NGO Coordination Committee, a conglomerate of major civil society organisations and student bodies, also considered the exercise crucial.
Expressing concern over the draft electoral roll, Malsawmliana said the revision should ensure that only legitimate citizens remain on the rolls while preventing the inclusion of foreigners. He called for hearings to be conducted with due regard to safeguarding the interests of indigenous communities and urged election authorities to work collectively towards preparing a credible electoral roll.
He also appealed to Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) to perform their duties impartially and courageously, ensuring that no ineligible person is included in the voters’ list, while assuring election officials of the YMA’s full support in carrying out the exercise.
During the meeting, Mamit YMA unit president H. Darhmingliana expressed concern over the alleged rapid growth of the Chakma population.
Leaders from various YMA groups also pointed to what they described as unusually high population growth in villages where there are no YMA units.
In response, election officials said YMA group leaders would be informed whenever hearings are scheduled in those villages so they could remain informed about the proceedings, the YMA said.
Central YMA treasurer H. Duhkima said there was growing concern over demographic changes as the Mizos are a small indigenous community. He said the organisation considered it essential that the SIR process neither excluded genuine citizens nor allowed ineligible persons to remain on the electoral rolls, thereby preserving the integrity of the revision exercise.
Dampa constituency ERO N. Lalzarzova told the meeting that only eligible voters would be included in the electoral rolls and that officials were insisting on proper documentation while carrying out the verification process with utmost care.
Hachhek constituency ERO Lalchhanhima said Booth Level Officers (BLOs) found unsuitable had been replaced to strengthen the revision process.