58 Lakh Voters Dropped From Bengal Draft Voter List Ahead Of Polls

Ahead of the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections, the Election Commission has deleted nearly 58 lakh names from the state’s draft voter list after conducting a Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

According to official data, out of the 58 lakh deleted names, 24 lakh voters have been marked as dead, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and around 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries.

The publication of this draft list marks the completion of the first phase of the SIR exercise, which aims to remove duplication and errors from the electoral rolls. Notably, the last such revision in West Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The Election Commission has clarified that this is only a draft list.

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Voters whose names have been wrongly removed can file objections and seek corrections during the claims and objections period.

After addressing these concerns, the final voter list will be released in February next year, following which the schedule for the Assembly elections is expected to be announced.

The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) has strongly opposed the deletions.

TMC MP Saugata Roy termed the exercise an “injustice” and accused the BJP of trying to remove genuine voters. He said the party has set up voter assistance booths to help people reapply for inclusion in the voter list.

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Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also criticised the SIR process, alleging that the Centre and the Election Commission are targeting eligible voters ahead of elections. She has urged people to protest if their names are struck off the rolls.

The BJP, however, defended the revision exercise. Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari claimed the deletions would remove fake and illegal voters, accusing the TMC of protecting its vote bank.

(With inputs from NDTV)