U.P. SIR: 2.89 Cr Voters Deleted From Draft Electoral Roll
While the exercise was originally scheduled to end on December 11, the state sought an additional 15 days after noticing that the names of a large number of voters were getting excluded from the draft list
New Delhi: Close to 3 crore voters have been excluded from the draft electoral roll for Uttar Pradesh, published on Tuesday after the completion of the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise in the state. A political slugfest started shortly after, with the Congress and the Samajwadi Party leaders calling the exercise "hasty" and alleging several names had been deliberately cut off the list.
As per information provided by the office of the Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), out of 15.44 crore voters listed earlier, 12.55 crore (81.3 per cent) were retained and the remaining 18.7 per cent, or about 2.89 crore voters, have been struck off due to death, permanent migration or multiple registrations.
The UP CEO said the booth-level officers (BLO) did not find these electors or did not get back their enumeration forms because they have either shifted permanently or were found missing or absent from their respective polling areas. Some voters' names were struck out because they did not submit the form till the December 26 deadline.
According to the state election commission officials, Prayagraj, Kanpur city, Agra, Ghaziabad, Bareilly, Meerut, Gorakhpur, Sitapur, Lucknow and Varanasi were among the top 10 districts that saw the highest number of uncollected SIR forms.
“On March 6, we will issue the final voter list under SIR. Voters should check their details by entering their EPIC number on the website. If their name is not available, they should fill out Form 6,” said UP’s CEO Navdeep Rinwa while releasing the draft rolls.
During the SIR exercise in Uttar Pradesh, 2.17 crore (14.06 per cent) voters had either shifted or were absent during door-to-door verification, 46.23-lakh (2.99 per cent) persons were found to be dead and 25.47-lakh (1.65 per cent) persons were found to have been enrolled at different places. In all, the enumeration forms were collected back from 12.55-crore (81.30 per cent) voters.
UP Congress president Ajay Rai said the time allotted for the SIR exercise was short. "This is a completely hasty decision. The way the SIR process was started by giving only one month in a large state like Uttar Pradesh is unreasonable," Rai said, adding, "The removal of 2.89-crore voters is a matter of inquiry…1.13-crore forms were not returned. This is a big conspiracy and a probe should be done."
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav posted videos of voters who claimed their names had been struck off and sought a probe into the matter. He also posted videos in which claims were made that BLOs at certain places were compromised.
The state poll body clarified that all genuine electors whose names are not included as of now can still be added back to the electoral roll during the "claims and objection" period till February 6 by filling out Form-6 along with the declaration form and other relevant documents. It was also clarified that the names of the electors found enrolled at multiple places in electoral rolls will be retained only at one place.
The state election body said special efforts were taken during the SIR to ensure complete coverage of all the eligible electors and include as many people as possible. They added camps for marginal electors were organised across the state. Around 1,546 meetings with representatives of recognised political parties were organised at levels of electoral registration officers (EROs), district election officers (DEOs) and CEO in the state to inform them of the important points of law and procedures of the SIR and to seek their co-operation.
Officials said young electors who have attained 18 years of age on or before January 1, 2026, are being encouraged to apply through Form-6 along with relevant documents. So far 15,78,483 Form-6s have been collected for the inclusion of new electors whose names will be included after inquiry and collection of the declaration form and relevant documents; names will be added in the electoral rolls.
State election commission officials further said that efforts were made for engagement with electors and political parties and in this regard, booth-level lists of electors reported as deceased, permanently migrated, untraceable, or whose forms were not received were shared with the booth-level agents (BLA) appointed by the political parties for verification.
The state poll body clarified that no deletion of names will be done without due process. Any aggrieved elector can appeal to the district magistrate and thereafter to the CEO.