In response to a Right to Information application filed by activist MA Mujeeb Ayyub, the Election Commission on October 16 added that “no new software has been developed or procured for the special intensive revision”.
It said that electoral registration officers decide on the inclusion or exclusion of an elector “on the basis of facts and records”.
The response comes amid protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the functioning of the Election Commission and the alleged irregularities in how the voter roll is being revised.
He also asked whether AI, machine learning, predictive analytics or automated decision support tools were used at any stage.
In May, the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the exercise, but said that it does not mean that the Election Commission can decide on whether the person is an Indian citizen.
The Election Commission has refused to reveal the name and version of the software that it purportedly used to detect errors and anomalies in the electoral rolls during the special intensive revision, citing the exemption for information relating to “commercial confidence, trade secrets and intellectual property” under the Right to Information Act, the Hindustan Times reported.
In response to a Right to Information application filed by activist MA Mujeeb Ayyub, the Election Commission on October 16 added that “no new software has been developed or procured for the special intensive revision”.
It said that electoral registration officers decide on the inclusion or exclusion of an elector “on the basis of facts and records”.
“The electoral registration officer of the concerned constituency is the statutory authority responsible for the preparation and revision of electoral roll of that constituency,” the Hindustan Times quoted the Election Commission as saying.
The response comes amid protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the functioning of the Election Commission and the alleged irregularities in how the voter roll is being revised.
In his application, Ayyub had also asked whether the software or artificial intelligence platform being used automatically flags voter records for verification, correction or deletion, and what safeguards are in place to prevent false positives and the wrongful flagging of genuine electors, the newspaper reported.
He also asked whether AI, machine learning, predictive analytics or automated decision support tools were used at any stage.
The Election Commission in its reply said that the some of information sought by the applicant was a “clarification” that does not fall within the definition of “information” under the Right to Information Act.
On the question of who reviews the flagged anomalies, the poll body refused to disclose the information, citing an exemption under the Act for details that could endanger a person’s life or physical safety or reveal confidential sources of information provided for law enforcement or security purposes, the Hindustan Times reported.
The Congress on Sunday said that the poll body continued to “hide information” about ECINEt, the Election Commission’s online platform for voter registration and related services.
“The lack of transparency around the ECINET software and the use of AI has damaged the credibility of the entire process among citizens,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote on social media. “The Election Commission is repeatedly refusing to provide this information because it will reveal the reality of the massive, centralised manipulation that has taken place.”
He asked why the poll body was denying the use of AI in the special intensive revision of voter rolls, “when it is clearly being used”.
Referring to a report by The Indian Express, he added, “The ECINET software and the Information and Technology Division of the Election Commission were the focus of several objections raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.”
On September 23, The Indian Express reported that Sandhu and Joshi had formally objected 14 times in 10 months to decisions by the poll panel related to the special intensive revision of electoral rolls, saying some had been taken without their knowledge.
Since the exercise began in June 2025, the SIR has faced questions about the manner and pace of its implementation, amid concerns that it could deny genuine electors their right to vote and shape election outcomes , as Scroll has reported.
In May, the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the exercise, but said that it does not mean that the Election Commission can decide on whether the person is an Indian citizen.
Edited by Sara Varghese.
Also read:
