Imams step in as mosques turn into SIR assistance centres in UP

The SIR is currently underway across 12 states and Union Territories.

Across several Muslim-majority towns in western Uttar Pradesh, the ongoing Summary Revision of Electoral Rolls (SIR) has reportedly triggered widespread confusion, prompting mosques, madrasas and neighbourhood shops to turn into de facto help centres.

Residents worried about documentation and the fear of missing from the electoral rolls are seeking guidance wherever they can find it, as per a report by the Times of India.

In Sherkot, Nagina, Dhampur and Najibabad, mosque loudspeakers that typically relay routine announcements now urge people to gather documents and complete their SIR formalities without delay.

Clerics cited in the report have said that they stepped in after a surge of queries from anxious residents. “When a form affects someone’s identity, the mosque cannot stay silent,” according to Imam Mohammad Abrar, explaining the paperwork over the public address system, as cited in the report.

The report further outlines that assistance camps have cropped up in madrasa verandas, under temporary tents and inside small baithaks. Volunteers are helping residents fill out online forms, upload documents and avoid errors that could lead to rejection.

Meanwhile, Madrasa students scan QR codes and prepare PDFs for elderly citizens who arrive carrying old voter IDs, land deeds and birth records, states the report.

Although officials cited in the report describe the SIR as a routine pre-election update ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, the process has revived sensitivities linked to earlier debates on CAA and NRC.

The workload has surged for Booth-Level Officers as well, with many processing hundreds of forms amid repeated portal crashes. Informal support systems have stepped in -- photocopy shops, mobile recharge outlets and retired teachers now handle dozens of visitors each day.

The SIR is currently underway across 12 states and Union Territories -- Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Puducherry, and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.

Separately, the Election Commission has also ordered a ‘Special Revision’ of Assam’s electoral rolls ahead of the state’s upcoming polls.