SIR: UP Could Drop Nearly 2.89 Crore Names From Voter List In Major Cleanup Move

New Delhi: The Election Commission of India on Tuesday revised the schedule for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) for Uttar Pradesh. Officials in the state say a large-scale revision of the electoral roll could lead to the removal of nearly 2.89 crore names from the state's voter list.

The draft voter list is now expected to be published on January 6, 2026, after dates were pushed back from December 31. Once out, voters will have a window to raise claims or objections.

Why are so many names being removed?

Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa had earlier said that more than one crore voters in the draft list fall under the "unmapped" category.

According to Navdeep Rinwa, the deletions are due to several key reasons:

• A large number of voters are no longer alive.
• Many have moved permanently to different addresses.
• Some names appeared more than once in the records.
• A portion of voters were untraceable or failed to participate in the verification process.

These checks are meant to make sure that only eligible and correctly registered voters stay on the rolls.

Where is the impact felt most?

Urban areas such as Lucknow, Ghaziabad, Prayagraj, and Kanpur have seen a high share of names flagged for deletion. These centres reported large numbers of people either shifting residence or having duplicate entries in the system.

• Lucknow has the maximum number of deletions, with approximately 12 lakh likely deletions from the draft electoral rolls.
• Prayagraj (11.56 lakh or 24.64 per cent of electors)
• Kanpur Nagar (9 lakh or 25.5 per cent of electors)
• Agra (8.36 lakh or 23.25 per cent of electors)
• Ghaziabad (8.18 lakh or 28.83 per cent of electors)

How will people know if they've been dropped?

Once the draft electoral roll is published, people whose names don't appear will be able to contest the removal. They can reapply using Form 6 from January 1 onward. New voters can also use this form to register.

There will also be a period for objections from January 6 to February 6, during which anyone can raise concerns about the inclusion or exclusion of names using Form 7.

Officials will send notices to more than 1 crore voters who fall under an “unmapped” category, asking them to submit self-attested documents like proof of residence, birth certificates, passports, or school records to stay on the updated list.

What happens next?

After objections and claims are processed by late February, the final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on March 6, 2026. This final list will be used for future elections in the state.

The SIR schedule has changed three times since the exercise started on October 27 in Uttar Pradesh.