'Arrest me': Prashant Kishor hits back at EC over dual voter ID row; clarifies on name in Bihar, Bengal rolls

NEW DELHI: Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor on Tuesday hit back at the Election Commission of India (ECI) over a notice sent to him for being registered as a voter in both Bihar and West Bengal, saying, "If I've broken any law, then arrest me."Speaking to reporters in Bihar, Kishor said, "The Election Commission’s SIR drive could not intimidate the people of Bihar, their attempts to delete voters’ names have failed. I have been a registered voter of my village, Konar, since 2019, but I spent two years in Kolkata, so naturally, records exist there as well.""They’ve sent me a notice as if to threaten me. Why send any notice? If there’s wrongdoing, then arrest me and prove it," he added.

The poll strategist-turned-politician further clarified that his details are publicly available, saying, "The Election Commission claims it has conducted the SIR and verified the entire voter list, Prashant Kishor’s name is listed in Konar under the Karghar Assembly segment, you can download and check it yourself."His comments came a day after the ECI sought clarification from him within three days over alleged dual enrollment as a voter.

According to the notice issued by the Returning Officer of the Kargahar Assembly Constituency in Rohtas, the commission took note of a media report from October 28, 2025, that flagged Kishor’s name appearing on electoral rolls in both Bihar and West Bengal. "Therefore, you are required to submit your explanation within three days regarding the entry of your name in more than one constituency," it noted.Kishor is listed as a voter at 121 Kalighat Road in Kolkata, the address of the Trinamool Congress headquarters in the Bhabanipur constituency, the seat represented by West Bengal chief minister and TMC leader Mamata Banerjee, as per official documents cited by PTI news agency.

"His polling station is listed as St Helen School on B Ranishankari Lane," the official added. However in Bihar, Kishor is registered under the Kargahar Assembly segment in Rohtas district, with Madhya Vidyalaya, Konar, as his polling station.

What is the legal provisions on dual enrollment

Under the Representation of the People Act (Section 31), no individual can be enrolled as a voter in more than one place. Violation of this provision is punishable with up to one year in jail, fine, or both. In cases of change of residence, a voter must fill Form 8, requesting inclusion in the new constituency and deletion from the old one, reported PTI.Kishor’s foray into Bihar politics through Jan Suraaj has unsettled both the ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc. Both camps have seized on the controversy after the ECI’s notice.The EC, meanwhile, has said that duplicate voter entries are a recurring problem and one of the key reasons for launching the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) drive nationwide. The exercise, first carried out in Bihar, led to the deletion of around 68.66 lakh entries, including about seven lakh duplicate registrations, as per official data released on September 30.