Karnataka SEC seeks SC nod to extend GBA civic polls deadline

It has also requested to allow elections to all panchayats and urban local bodies in Karnataka to be held using Assembly constituency voter lists as they stood on October 1, 2025.

Bengaluru: The Karnataka State Election Commission has moved the Supreme Court seeking an extension of the deadline for completing elections to the five city corporations under the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) by one month, until January 31, 2027.

The Commission has also requested permission to use the final electoral roll published on April 18, 2026, before the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), instead of waiting for the complete post-revision voter database.

The Supreme Court had directed on July 17 that elections to the five corporations be completed by December 31, 2026. The ongoing SIR exercise was among the factors considered while issuing the deadline.

In its latest application, the SEC said the post-SIR final voter list was published on October 27, but the complete verified data required for election-related work was yet to be supplied.

The missing information includes details of additions, deletions, transfers and corrections. The Commission said it needs the authenticated database to prepare ward-wise electoral rolls through mapping and verification.

It estimated that preparation of ward-wise lists would require at least two months after receiving the complete data, while another month would be needed to conduct the elections. This, it said, made the existing December 31 deadline difficult to meet.

The SEC has therefore sought permission to use the April 18 voter list, which is already available, and complete the GBA corporation election process by January 31, 2027.

Separately, it has requested the Supreme Court to allow elections to all panchayats and urban local bodies in Karnataka to be held using Assembly constituency voter lists as they stood on October 1, 2025.