65 Million Names Off Voter Lists In 12 States; UP, Bengal Top The Cleanup, SIR Goes National

New Delhi: The purification of voter lists has intensified across the country. The Election Commission conducted a Special Intensive Review (SIR) of voters in 12 states and union territories, including Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Gujarat. In the first phase alone, about 6 crore 50 lakh names had to be removed from the draft list. These include the number of dead voters, people who have shifted to another place, names found absent, and voters registered at two places.

Why were most names cut in UP?

The most shocking situation was in Uttar Pradesh, where 2.89 crore names alone were found in wrong entries. Tamil Nadu stood second, where 97.37 lakh voters were found whose records were not valid. After this, a large number of wrong entries were also reported in the states of Gujarat (73.73 lakh), West Bengal (58.20 lakh), Madhya Pradesh (42.74 lakh), Rajasthan (41.85 lakh), Chhattisgarh (27.34 lakh), and Kerala (24 lakh).

What should the common people do after the release of the draft list?

Except for Uttar Pradesh, the draft voter list has been released in the remaining 11 states. The UP list will be released on December 31. The Commission has clearly said that if someone's name has been removed or added by mistake, then the right to claim and object is completely open. In these states, claims and objections can be lodged, and verification will take place from 23 December to 14 February. The final voter list will be published on February 21. Political parties have been advised to keep their Booth Level Agent (BLA) active so that any error can be reported immediately.

Will the people included in the list now be considered confirmed voters?

According to sources associated with the Election Commission, this is only the first phase. The records of those who did not submit the enumeration form during SIR are still under investigation. Therefore, there is a possibility of some more names being removed or added after the upcoming verification. About 51 crore voters were registered in these 12 states before the review started.

When will the review start in the remaining states?

As soon as the first list is prepared by February 21, the Commission will start the review in the remaining 23 states and union territories as well. These include big states like Punjab, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh. Training of BLOs is now the main focus of the new SIR phase. The Chief Election Commissioner himself is visiting many states and monitoring the training programmes. The Commission wants the purification of voter lists in the entire country to be completed by the beginning of the year 2026. It originated in Bihar, and now the aim is to cover the entire country.