ECI Compliance

Election laws, expenditure limits

Election 2027

Total Voters

2,14,57,160

Pre-SIR electorate

SIR Mapping Rate

83.69%

~35 lakh (16.31%) unmapped

Assembly Constituencies

117

24500 polling stations

Criminal Candidates

25%

326 of 1,304 candidates

Expenditure Limit

Rs 40 L

Per candidate

Avg Spending

Rs 28.0 L

Per candidate (2022)

Postal Ballots

77,500

3.61% of votes

2022 Turnout

69.65%

February 20, 2022

Election Timeline

CEO Punjab — Anindita Mitra, IAS

✓

16th Assembly term ends

By February 2027

VERIFIED

✓

Expected election period

February 2027

VERIFIED

✓

SIR notification issued

May 14, 2026

VERIFIED

✓

BLO training & preparation

June 15-24, 2026

VERIFIED

✓

Door-to-door verification (SIR)

June 25 - July 24, 2026

VERIFIED

✓

Draft Roll publication

July 31, 2026

VERIFIED

✓

Claims & objections period

July-August 2026

VERIFIED

✓

Notice period for unmatched records

July 31 - September 28, 2026

VERIFIED

✓

Final electoral roll publication

October 1, 2026

VERIFIED

ECI election notification

December 2026 - January 2027 (estimated)

UNCERTAIN

Model Code of Conduct enforcement

~45 days before polling (estimated)

UNCERTAIN

Polling day

February 2027 (estimated)

UNCERTAIN

Voter Demographics

2,14,61,739 total voters

Male Voters

1,12,86,726

Female Voters

1,01,74,240

First-Time Voters

5,38,715

85+ Voters

1,89,855

Gender Ratio

1,000:901 (approx) — 6 pts below national average

Rural Mapping

89.58%

Urban Mapping

73%

Turnout Trends

Lok Sabha 201470.6%

Assembly 201777.4%

Lok Sabha 201965.8%

Assembly 202271.3%

Lok Sabha 202462.8%

Special Intensive Revision (SIR)

Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a constitutionally mandated exercise under Article 324 and Section 21(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, through which ECI verifies and revises electoral rolls via house-to-house enumeration.

Last Revision2003 (meaning voter data is being cross-checked against 23-year-old records)

SIR implementation phases

Phase	Period	Activity
Pre-SIR Mapping	January-February 2026	Data matching against 2003 voter lists
Preparation & Training	June 15-24, 2026	BLO and staff training, form printing
Enumeration	June 25 - July 24, 2026	Door-to-door visits by 24,453 BLOs
Draft Roll	July 31, 2026	Publication of draft electoral roll
Claims & Objections	July-August 2026	Form 6/8 submissions for omitted voters
Notice Period	July 31 - September 28, 2026	7-day notice to unmatched voters
Final Roll	October 1, 2026	Publication of final voter rolls

Risk Assessment

Urban voter deletionHIGH

Urban mapping at only 73% vs 89.58% rural — Congress has stronger urban bases in Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar

Youth voter exclusionHIGH

Young/migrant voters with limited documentation may be excluded

Timing controversyMEDIUM

Both AAP and Congress have raised concerns about SIR timing before elections

Data basis concernsMEDIUM

SIR cross-checks against 2003 voter data — 23-year-old baseline

BLO partisanshipMEDIUM

24,453 BLOs are government employees under AAP state government

Assembly Composition (2022)

117 seats across parties

AAP

42.01%92

INC (Congress)

22.8%18

SAD

—3

BJP

—2

Others

—2

Caste Group Distribution

Group	% Population	Est. Voters	Political Significance
Jat Sikh	21%	~45 lakh	Dominant agrarian community; swing voters
Mazhabi/Ramdasia Sikh	12%	~25 lakh	SC Sikh; Congress/AAP competition
Chamar/Ravidassia	14%	~30 lakh	SC Hindu/Sikh; traditional Congress base
Khatri/Arora	6%	~13 lakh	Urban, business community
Bania	5.5%	~12 lakh	Urban trading community
Brahmin	3.2%	~7 lakh	Upper caste, urban/rural mix
Saini	3%	~6.5 lakh	OBC; agricultural community
Other OBCs	8%	~17 lakh	Kumhar, Teli, Nai etc.
Others	27%	~58 lakh	Various communities

Criminalization of Candidates

Punjab ranks #1 among states

Candidates with Cases

25%

326 of 1304

Serious Cases

15%

195 candidates

Trend: 25% in 2022 vs 9% in 2017

Party-wise criminal cases breakdown

Party	Candidates	With Cases	%	Serious	%
AAP	89	26	29%	15	17%
INC	84	20	24%	12	14%
SAD	87	23	26%	14	16%
BJP	82	18	22%	10	12%
BSP	91	31	34%	18	20%
Others	871	208	24%	126	14%

Top Districts by Criminalization

Fatehgarh Sahib53%

Moga50%

Sangrur47%

Bathinda46%

Ludhiana44%

Candidate Affidavit Analysis

99.5% affidavit compliance

Avg Assets

Rs 40.4 L

Candidates Above Rs 1 Cr

284

Party-wise Average Assets

AAPRs 42.0 L

INCRs 58.0 L

SADRs 65.0 L

BJPRs 72.0 L

BSPRs 21.0 L

OthersRs 28.0 L

Education Levels

Illiterate9%

Metric/10th69%

12th/Intermediate89%

Graduate86%

Post Graduate31%

Doctorate/Professional6%

Expenditure Analysis

Limit: Rs 0.4 Cr per candidate

Campaigning/Rallies

Max: Rs 22.0 L

21%

of limit

Media/Advertising

Max: Rs 18.0 L

18%

of limit

Travel/Transport

Max: Rs 11.0 L

11%

of limit

Booth Level Activities

Max: Rs 9.5 L

10%

of limit

Door-to-Door Campaigns

Max: Rs 8.0 L

of limit

Common Violations

Cash distribution reported at Rs 500-2000 per voter in some constituencies
Liquor distribution worth lakhs on polling day
Vehicle rallies exceeding permitted limits
Food/catering expenses not properly accounted

Postal Ballot Analysis

3.61% of total votes in 2022

Total Issued

77,500

Counting Rate

92%

Postal ballot category-wise uptake

Category	Eligible	Applied	Issued	Counted	Uptake
Service Voters (Defense/Central)	15,000	8,500	8,200	7,200	52%
Senior Citizens (85+)	1,89,855	28,000	27,500	24,800	14%
Disabled/ Differently Abled	1,58,718	22,000	21,500	19,200	13%
Essential Services	8,000	3,200	3,100	2,700	40%
COVID-19 Affected	0	0	0	0	0%
Other Categories	25,000	15,800	15,200	13,800	63%

Intelligence Actions — Immediate

Priority actions from ECI monitoring analysis

BLA Appointment: Congress must urgently appoint Booth Level Agents (BLAs) to monitor SIR

URGENT

Urban voter protection: Focus resources on cities where 27% mapping gap threatens voter inclusion

CRITICAL

Youth/new voter registration: Ensure newly eligible voters (turned 18 since 2022) are captured

HIGH

Documentation drives: Help voters compile acceptable documentation (non-Aadhaar) for SIR compliance

HIGH

Risk Matrix

Election-related risks and mitigations

Large-scale urban voter deletion

MEDIUMVERY_HIGH

Deploy BLAs at every urban booth

Youth voter exclusion

HIGHHIGH

Registration drives in colleges/universities

Manipulation of BLO process

MEDIUMHIGH

Parallel verification by Congress workers

Delayed/late SIR completion

LOWMEDIUM

Monitor ECI timeline compliance

EVM/VVPAT malfunction

LOWMEDIUM

Standard ECI protocols handle this

Research Sources

Research Agent - Multiple Source Cross-Reference

The Hindu. (2026, May 15). AAP, Congress raises concern over SIR in Punjab ahead of 2027 assembly polls.
ETV Bharat. (2026, May 14). Punjab CEO announces month-long Special Intensive Revision campaign starting June 25.
Babushahi Bureau. (2026, May 15). CEO Anindita Mitra urges registered and recognized political parties to appoint BLAs.
UNI India. (2026, January 30). Punjab to undergo intensive voter list revision ahead of 2027 polls.
CEO Punjab official portal: ceopunjab.gov.in