Prashant Kishor is a voter in two states, Bihar and West Bengal, says report ahead of nationwide SIR

Political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor has been enrolled as a voter in two states — Bihar and West Bengal, the Indian Express reported on Tuesday, October 28. A senior member of his team said Prashant Kishor became a voter in Bihar after the West Bengal Elections.

Prashant Kishor's two addresses

As per the report, Prashant Kishor's address in Bengal is listed as 121 Kalighat Road, which houses the Trinamool Congress office in Bhabanipur, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s assembly constituency. His polling station is listed as St Helen School on B Ranishankari Lane.

Kishor had worked with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) as a political consultant during the 2021 West Bengal Assembly polls.

In Bihar, Kishor is registered as a voter in the Kargahar assembly constituency under the Sasaram parliamentary constituency. His polling station is Madhya Vidyalay, Konar, under the Rohtas district. Konar is Kishor’s paternal village, the India Express reported.

Prashant Kishor wants to cancel

Sources close to Kishor said the Jan Suraaj Party founder has applied to have his Bengal voter card cancelled. The leader, however, did not elaborate on the status of the application.

Neither Prashant Kishor nor Bihar’s Chief Electoral Officer Vinod Singh Gunjiyal have responded to the claim yet.

Is it legal to be enrolled as voter in two states?

No. A “person cannot be enrolled as a voter in more than one place in the same constituency or in more than one constituency in view of the provisions contained” under Section 17 and Section 18 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.

Once registered, the elector can shift their enrolment by filling Form 8, the Election Commission’s form for shifting residence or correcting errors.

Nationwide SIR

The Election Commission has already conducted the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar and plans to roll it out across the country soon.

The poll body had cited “repeated entries in the electoral roll” as one of the reasons for conducting the SIR in Bihar.

“Some electors obtain registration in one place and then shift their residence and register themselves at another place without getting their names deleted from the electoral roll of the initial place of residence. This has led to an increased possibility of repeated entries in the electoral roll,” the EC had said in its June 24 order for the SIR.

Timeline for nationwide SIR

The Election Commission had announced on October 27 its decision to hold the second phase of the Special Intensive Revision in 12 States and Union Territories.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said that the poll body will conduct the second phase of the SIR in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, with the final list to be published on February 7, 2026.

According to the Election Commission, printing and training will take place from October 28 to November 3, followed by an Enumeration Phase from November to December 4.

The Draft Electoral Rolls will be published on December 9, followed by a claims and objection period from December 9 to January 8, 2026.

The Notice Phase (for hearing and verification) will take place between December 9 and January 31, 202, with publication of Final Electoral Rolls on February 7, 2026.

(With inputs from agencies)