Delhi Draft Voter List: 47.56 Lakh Names Deleted, 33 Lakh to Get Notices
The Election Commission on Monday published the draft electoral roll for Delhi, in which the names of 47.56 lakh (32.78%) voters have been removed. According to poll officials, the deletions were carried out during the 49-day enumeration phase of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) drive, based on forms that were not returned.
The publication drew immediate reactions from political parties. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal criticised the deletions, posting on X that "the names of 47 lakh voters are missing" and alleging that the Election Commission would reduce the country's population from 140 crore to 50 crore through SIR. Delhi BJP president Harsh Malhotra responded by stating that if Kejriwal believed any genuine and eligible voter had been left out despite submitting a form, he should present such cases to the Election Commission instead of levelling allegations. The Congress's Delhi unit alleged that, despite repeated requests, the office of Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Ashok Kumar has refused to share data on unmapped electors and those identified under categories such as 'absent', 'shifted', 'dead', 'duplicate' and 'others'.
The draft roll contains 97.53 lakh voters. Of these, over 33 lakh will receive notices because their forms could not be mapped to the previous SIR or because they were flagged for various anomalies. These include multiple children linked to the same parent, an age gap of under 15 years between parent and child, mismatched names between rolls, and differences in surnames. According to data accessed by The Hindu, the highest number of notices is set to be issued to voters in the North East district (3 lakh), which includes the constituencies of Karawal Nagar, Mustafabad, Gokalpur, and Babarpur.
A senior official explained that from the date of issuance, each notice will carry details such as the reason, time and location of the hearing, and the voter will have seven days to reply and seek an extension. Notices will be delivered by Booth Level Officers (BLOs), while hearings will be conducted by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officers. The official also said that it is not mandatory for an elector to physically appear for the hearing. "The notices will carry a QR code where voters can upload the document or send it through the BLO," he added.
In cases where a person does not appear for a hearing, fails to provide any of the 11 prescribed documents, or if their eligibility is in doubt, the ERO will issue an order removing the name and specifying the reasons. Those whose names have been removed can approach the District Election Officer (the first appellate authority), followed by the CEO (the second and final appellate authority). The CEO's office said in a release that excluded voters could apply for re-inclusion in the final roll by enrolling as new voters through Form 6, along with a declaration (similar to the enumeration form) and documents, until September 30.
The SIR drive is a periodic exercise to update the electoral roll by adding new voters and removing ineligible ones. The draft roll is open for claims and objections before the final roll is published. The current phase aims to ensure that only eligible voters remain on the list, with notices and hearings providing an opportunity for affected individuals to present their case.
