Bihar's Electoral Roll Revision: The Paradox of a Declining Gender Ratio
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Indian Polity and Governance (Election Commission of India - ECI, Elections, Electoral Rolls, Representation of the People Act, 1950); Social Issues (Gender issues, Migration).
Mains:
General Studies Paper 1 (Society): Role of women and women's organization; Population and associated issues (Migration); Social empowerment.
General Studies Paper 2 (Polity & Governance): Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act; Powers, functions and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies (ECI); Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors.
Key Highlights from the News
Data analysis reveals a major paradox after the Election Commission's (EC) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) to "purify" the voter list in Bihar.
Despite women's voter turnout being higher than men's in previous elections, the gender ratio in the voter list decreased from 907 to 892 after SIR.
This means a proportionally higher number of women were excluded from the voter list than men, potentially leading to the disenfranchisement of many eligible female voters.
One reason given by the Election Commission is that women migrate after marriage.
However, this argument does not align with the reality that men migrate more for employment in Bihar.
This incident highlights how intensive verification processes like SIR can adversely affect vulnerable groups, such as undocumented women.
The Election Commissioner stating that it is the responsibility of political parties to add the names of those excluded led to criticism that the Commission is shirking its responsibility.
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