Three Afghan nationals found on Jamshedpur voter roll during SIR verification

The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Jharkhand has raised questions over how three foreign nationals allegedly found their way onto the voter list in Jamshedpur.

During verification of the electoral roll in the Jamshedpur East Assembly constituency, election officials identified three individuals whose records reportedly showed them to be citizens of Afghanistan. Their names had been included in the Indian electoral roll despite their alleged foreign citizenship.

The Election Department has since removed the three names from the voter list and launched an inquiry into how they were originally included.

Three names found at the same polling booth

According to election officials, the names of Asil Khan, Mohammad Aslam and Mohammad Ibrahim appeared in the voter list for polling booth No. 286 in the Jamshedpur East constituency. They were listed at serial numbers 30, 31 and 33 respectively.

The polling station is located at Hindustani Sangh School in Golmuri.

The issue came to light during the document verification process under the SIR exercise. Officials reportedly issued notices seeking relevant documents from the individuals. Their available records, including passport-related documents, were subsequently examined.

The verification reportedly established that the three were Afghan nationals. Following the findings, their names were deleted from the electoral roll.

How did their names enter the voter list?

The deletion of the three names has now led to a larger question for the election authorities: how were the names of people who were allegedly not Indian citizens included in the electoral roll in the first place?

Dhalbhum SDO Arnav Mishra said a committee has been constituted to investigate the matter. The inquiry will examine whether there was any lapse during the initial verification process and whether proper procedures were followed when the names were added to the electoral roll.

Officials are also examining whether the inclusion was the result of an inadvertent error or whether any individual or organised effort was involved. Documents collected during the SIR verification are also being scrutinised as part of the inquiry.

BJP seeks scrutiny of Jamshedpur West rolls

The issue has also triggered a political response. BJP state president Abhay Singh has described the matter as serious and called for similar scrutiny of the electoral rolls in Jamshedpur West.

Singh has sought verification in areas including Azad Nagar and Dhatkidih, arguing that the discovery in Jamshedpur East warrants a broader examination of voter records in the city. He has said he would raise the issue with ADM Anurag Tiwari and has also questioned the Congress over the matter.

The political allegations, however, remain separate from the official inquiry, which is still underway.

For now, the Election Department has removed the three disputed entries, but the more significant issue is the process through which they entered the voter list. The committee's findings are expected to determine whether the episode was caused by an administrative lapse, inadequate verification or some deliberate attempt to influence the electoral roll.