Bihar Elections 2025: 27.4% Dalit Voters Don't Trust EC, 71% Fears Losing Rights To Vote Due To SIR

A recent survey by the National Confederation of Dalit and Adivasi Organizations (NACDAOR) revealed that 27.4% of Dalit voters in Bihar have "no trust" in the Election Commission.

According to a report in The Hindu, the survey, conducted in collaboration with political consultancy firm The Convergent Media, also found that 58% of Scheduled Caste (SC) voters consider unemployment the biggest issue in the upcoming state assembly elections.

NACDAOR, a network of hundreds of associations nationwide, surveyed 18,581 SC voters across Bihar between June 10 and July 4, said Ashok Bharti, the organization's chairman. According to Bihar's 2022 caste-based survey, Scheduled Castes make up 19.65% of the state's population.

Voter List Fears and Trust in EC

Midway through the survey, the Election Commission began its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls, prompting NACDAOR to add a question: "Do you fear losing your vote in the new voter list?" Of the 8,500 respondents who answered, 71% said yes, while 23.4% said no, and 5% remained undecided.

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a door-to-door voter verification exercise being carried out by the Election Commission of India (ECI) across Bihar. This is the first such intensive revision in the state since 2003.

Under this drive, over 8 crore people in Bihar are being asked to update or verify their voter details. People who became eligible to vote after 2003 (i.e., born after 1987) must provide their parents' birth details if their parents weren't on the 2003 electoral rolls.

However, the opposition INDIA bloc, led by RJD's Tejashwi Yadav and Congress's Rahul Gandhi, has raised serious concerns about this exercise. They allege that SIR is not just about cleaning the voter list but is a political move to benefit the ruling NDA.

When asked if they trusted the Election Commission to be impartial, 27.4% said no, 51% said yes, and 21% expressed no opinion.

Who Is Favourite Leader?

The survey included 11 questions, ranging from favourite leaders to views on the state government. At the national level, 47.5% favoured PM Narendra Modi, 40.3% preferred Rahul Gandhi, and 12% named other leaders.

Regarding Bihar's caste census, 33.15% credited PM Modi, 30.81% credited Rahul Gandhi, and 27.57% credited Tejashwi Yadav, with 8% naming others.

On Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's performance, 48% rated it as "bad", while 45% called it "good".

A Survey "Of Dalits, By Dalits"

Bharti emphasized that unlike many other surveys, this one was conducted by Dalits themselves, with trained enumerators interviewing SC voters across 49 Assembly segments in Bihar's six regions.

"We actually surveyed people on the ground. There was higher trust in our enumerators," Bharti told the English daily, though he noted that the SIR-related question couldn't be posed to all respondents as it was added later.