Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kirit Somaiya has written to Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer S. Chockalingam, alleging serious irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in the Bandra East Assembly constituency. Somaiya claims that voter mapping of residents from the demolished Garib Nagar settlement was carried out illegally, despite officials being aware of the demolition.

What Somaiya Alleged

In his letter dated Tuesday, 14 July, Somaiya alleged that during the first round of the SIR process, block-level officials cleared the mapping of 1,296 voters out of 2,412 voters linked to Garib Nagar in Bandra East. This was done, he claimed, despite the settlement having already been demolished by railway authorities with the assistance of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Mumbai Police.

'We are shocked that the concerned block-level officials in the first round of SIR have cleared mapping of 1,296 voters out of 2,412 voters of Garib Nagar Bandra East,' Somaiya stated in his letter.

The Garib Nagar Demolition

Garib Nagar was an unauthorised settlement built on railway land in Mumbai. According to Somaiya's letter, the encroachment was demolished a few weeks ago by railway officials with the help of the BMC and Mumbai Police. He alleged that this demolition had been brought to the notice of the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) of Bandra East and the concerned Booth Level Officers (BLOs), but the information was reportedly ignored.

'It may be please noted that Garib Nagar unauthorised encroachment on railway property has been demolished few weeks back by the railway officials with the help of Mumbai Municipal Corporation and Mumbai Police,' Somaiya wrote.

Officials Allegedly Continued Mapping Despite Demolition

Somaiya further alleged that rather than striking off the names of voters associated with the demolished settlement, local officials conducted camps in the area and continued to include those names in the mapping exercise. He questioned how the process could proceed when both the BLOs and the ERO were reportedly aware that no residents remained at the site.

'When anybody everybody including the BLO and the ERO knows that Garib Nagar is demolished nobody staying there then also in the first round of SIR they completed the mapping work,' he wrote.

Demand for Action Against Officials

The BJP leader has urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to investigate the matter and take appropriate action against the officials responsible for what he described as illegal voter mapping. 'We request the Election Commission of India to take appropriate action against the officials,' Somaiya stated in his letter.

The allegations come amid the ongoing SIR process across Maharashtra, where electoral authorities are undertaking verification and mapping exercises to update voter rolls. This is not the first time the SIR process in the state has drawn political scrutiny — opposition parties and ruling alliance members alike have raised concerns about the integrity of voter list revisions ahead of future elections.

The Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer's office had not issued a public response to Somaiya's letter as of the time of reporting. How the ECI responds to the complaint is expected to set a precedent for how demolished or vacated settlements are treated in ongoing voter roll exercises statewide.