Top Headlines

Feeds

Election Commission Removes 6.5 Crore Names, Uttar Pradesh Leads With 2.89 Crore Deletions

Updated (8 articles)

Massive Roll Reduction Across Nine States and Three UTs The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise eliminated roughly 6.5 crore electors from draft rolls covering nine states and three Union Territories, shrinking the combined electorate from about 50.9 crore to 44.4 crore [1]. The removals were recorded during phase‑two of SIR, which began on 27 October 2025 and included states such as Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal [1]. Officials classified the deleted entries under the “Absent, Shifted and Dead/Duplicate” (ASD) category rather than erasing them outright [1].

Uttar Pradesh Deletes 2.89 Crore Voters, 18.7% Drop On 6 January 2026 the Election Commission released Uttar Pradesh’s draft roll, cutting 2.89 crore names from the previous 15.44 crore list and leaving 12.55 crore registered voters [2]. The deletions represent 18.70 % of the earlier roll, driven by 46.23 lakh deaths (2.99 %), 2.17 crore permanent migrations or unavailability (14.06 %), and 25.47 lakh duplicate registrations (1.65 %) [2]. This constitutes the highest absolute number of deletions among all regions where SIR has concluded [2].

Urban Centers Experience Highest Deletion Percentages and Booth Reconfigurations Verification uncovered the steepest cuts in urban districts: Lucknow lost 30 % of its entries, Ghaziabad 28 %, Kanpur 25 %, Gautam Buddha Nagar 23.7 % and Prayagraj 24 % [2]. In response, the Chief Electoral Officer reduced the voter‑per‑booth cap from 1,500 to 1,200 and added roughly 15,030 new polling stations, bringing the total to 1,72,486 booths staffed by 5,76,611 agents and volunteers [2]. Opposition parties allege that the deletions disproportionately affect marginalized communities and plan mass protests [2].

Removed Names Categorized as ASD; West Bengal Discrepancies Shrink Across the nine states, the ECI flagged removed names as ASD, noting especially low urban enumeration that contributed to the roll shrinkage [1]. In West Bengal, the SIR effort reduced logical progeny‑mapping discrepancies from 1.67 crore in the December draft to about 94.49 lakh by 2 January 2025, addressing mismatches in parents’ names, excessive progeny links, and age‑gap anomalies [3]. The state also eliminated 58 lakh ASDD entries and identified 30 lakh unmapped voters, underscoring the breadth of verification [3].

Opposition Parties Challenge Deletions and Demand Transparency Uttar Pradesh’s Congress party accused the Election Commission of selective deletions and announced a statewide movement to contest the draft rolls [2]. In West Bengal, Trinamool leaders, including Abhishek Banerjee, questioned why the EC has not publicly released the list of electors with logical discrepancies, raising concerns over procedural openness [3]. Both regional disputes highlight political tension surrounding the SIR’s impact on voter eligibility ahead of upcoming elections [2][3].

Sources

Related Tickers

by TradingView

Timeline

Oct 27, 2025 – The Election Commission launches Phase 2 of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) across nine states and three union territories, initiating verification in all 33 districts of Gujarat and beginning the enumeration phase that will later feed into draft roll preparation[1][6].

Nov 4, 2025 – The SIR rollout expands to specific states—Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal—and several UTs, while Assam undergoes a parallel special revision, marking the start of a 52‑day intensive cleaning of electoral lists[1].

Dec 8, 2025 – The Election Commission appoints five senior IAS officers as Special Roll Observers and a retired IAS officer to monitor the SIR across divisions, aiming to tighten oversight of enrolment and exclusion processes[8].

Dec 10, 2025 – West Bengal reports over 57.5 lakh uncollectable voter forms, including more than 24 lakh dead electors, prompting Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal to order rigorous scrutiny of progeny‑mapping and age‑gap anomalies before the draft roll release[8].

Dec 11, 2025 – The enumeration phase for West Bengal concludes, finalising the data that will underpin the draft electoral roll scheduled for publication on Dec 16[8].

Dec 16, 2025 – The Election Commission publishes draft electoral rolls for West Bengal, Rajasthan, Goa, Puducherry and Lakshadweep, opening a claims‑and‑objections window (Dec 16‑Jan 15) and setting Feb 14, 2026 as the deadline for final roll publication[7].

Dec 19, 2025 – Gujarat releases its SIR draft roll, showing a reduction from 5.08 crore to 4.34 crore voters after deleting 73.73 lakh names classified as deceased, absent, permanently migrated, duplicate or other categories; objections can be filed until Jan 18, 2026[6].

Dec 23, 2025 – Across Andaman & Nicobar, Kerala, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, the SIR deletes nearly 95 lakh names, with Madhya Pradesh alone shedding 42.74 lakh voters; the Election Commission announces that final rolls will be published on Feb 14, 2026[5].

Dec 26, 2025 – The 52‑day SIR in Uttar Pradesh ends (after two extensions), pruning the draft list to 12.55 crore voters and triggering a month‑long objections period beginning Jan 1, 2026; more than 1 crore voters are flagged as unmapped and must furnish documentation to avoid exclusion[4].

Dec 28, 2025 – The Uttar Pradesh draft roll removes 2.89 crore names (18.7 % of the pre‑SIR list), with opposition parties accusing the process of selective deletions that marginalise vulnerable communities, while the BJP dismisses the criticism as “bogus”[4][4].

Jan 1, 2026 – The Election Commission opens a month‑long claims‑and‑objections window for Uttar Pradesh, allowing deleted voters to contest removals via Form 6 and requiring unmapped voters to submit any of twelve prescribed documents[4].

Jan 3, 2026 – West Bengal’s SIR reduces logical progeny‑mapping discrepancies to about 94.49 lakh, down from 1.67 crore in the December draft, while opposition leaders question why the EC does not publicly disclose the discrepancy list[3].

Jan 6, 2026 – The Election Commission publishes Uttar Pradesh’s draft roll, confirming the deletion of 2.89 crore names (46.23 lakh dead, 2.17 crore migrated, 25.47 lakh duplicates) and announcing a reduction of voters per booth to 1,200, creation of 15,030 new polling stations, and a month‑long objections period[2].

Jan 7, 2026 – The Special Intensive Revision across nine states and three UTs removes roughly 6.5 crore names from draft rolls, cutting the combined electorate from 50.9 crore to 44.4 crore; officials classify deletions as Absent, Shifted, Dead or Duplicate (ASD) and note lower urban enumeration as a key driver[1][1].

Jan 15, 2026 – The claims‑and‑objections window for the five jurisdictions (West Bengal, Rajasthan, Goa, Puducherry, Lakshadweep) closes, finalising submissions that will feed into the February 14 final roll publication[7].

Jan 18, 2026 – Gujarat’s objections deadline passes, concluding the state‑specific SIR challenge period and paving the way for incorporation of approved changes into the final roll due Feb 14[6].

Feb 14, 2026 – The Election Commission is scheduled to publish the final electoral rolls for all SIR‑covered states and union territories, completing the “Clean Electoral Roll – Strong Democracy” exercise and setting the baseline for the upcoming 2026 general elections[5][7].

All related articles (8 articles)

External resources (1 links)