Aizwal: Mizoram’s apex student organisation, the Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP), on Wednesday challenged Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Garima Gupta’s assertion that the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has not recorded any abnormal growth in voter numbers, alleging significant increases in electors in several Chakma-dominated villages.
Addressing a press conference in Aizawl, MZP leaders said their analysis of the draft electoral rolls, published on July 4, revealed unusually high growth in the number of voters in villages inhabited predominantly by the Chakma community in southern Mizoram.
According to the student body, while voter numbers in several Chakma-majority villages increased by between 50 and 376 per cent, Mizo-dominated villages within the Chakma Autonomous District Council (CADC) area recorded comparatively modest growth of around 10 to 20 per cent.
Citing Sumasumi village in Lunglei district as an example, the MZP claimed the number of electors rose from 52 in the 2005 electoral roll to 248 in the latest draft roll, reflecting an increase of 376.92 per cent.
The organisation further alleged that seven Chakma-dominated villages recorded voter growth of more than 200 per cent, while 16 villages registered increases exceeding 100 per cent. It said its assessment covered 95 villages, of which over 30 showed increases of more than 50 per cent in the number of electors.
Questioning the CEO’s assessment, the MZP alleged that the Special Intensive Revision exercise had not been monitored adequately and urged Gupta to personally supervise the process until all discrepancies are addressed.
The student body also claimed there were deficiencies in electoral mapping across five Assembly constituencies and appealed to Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) and Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to exercise greater vigilance during the claims and objections period, which runs from July 4 to August 4.
It said it would work jointly with the Young Lai Association (YLA) and a Chakma student organisation to monitor the verification process during the claims and objections phase.
The MZP’s remarks came days after CEO Garima Gupta said the election department had not found any abnormal increase in voter numbers or evidence of foreign nationals being included in the electoral rolls following the Special Intensive Revision conducted between May 30 and June 28.
“We do not see any case of a foreign national being entered in the electoral roll. As per the draft roll, there is no large increase or abnormal growth in voter numbers,” Gupta had said while releasing the draft electoral rolls on July 4.
Meanwhile, an all-party meeting in Aizawl on Tuesday resolved that names appearing in the draft electoral rolls without linkage to the 2005 Special Intensive Revision records should be deleted. Political parties also called for detailed verification of doubtful entries in coordination with civil society organisations and non-governmental organisations to ensure the accuracy of the electoral rolls.
According to the CEO, enumeration forms of 46,163 electors, or 5.28 per cent of the 2025 electorate, could not be collected during the revision exercise. Of these, 21,295 voters were reported dead, 13,978 had permanently shifted, 8,333 could not be traced despite repeated visits, and 2,248 were found to be enrolled elsewhere. She also said 309 voters declined to participate in the revision on religious grounds.
The draft electoral rolls published on July 4 include 8,28,906 electors, including 4,29,881 women voters.