Net deletions due to SIR 5.2cr (10%) in 12 states/UTs; 2 crore included in Phase 2 | India News
NEW DELHI: The second phase of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) covered over 2 crore voters across 12 states and Union Territories (UTs), bringing down the net deletions to around 5.2 crore or 10.2% of their combined electorate of around 51 crore in October 20275 at the start of SIR. Phase 2 total deletion across states / UTs up to 7.2 crores. However, 2 crore names were included as new voters (Form 6 by first-time voters) and existing voters were listed at new addresses (Form 8). According to data received from EC, more than 6.5 crore absent, shifted, dead, double-enrolled and ‘other’ voters have been identified and excluded from the rolls of A&N Islands, UP, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, TN, Goa, Puducherry, MP, Rajasthan, Kerala and Lakshadweep. Another 63.2 lakh names were deleted through Form 7 (objection to inclusion in the roll) and judgments (specially in Bengal where judicial officers deleted 27.2 lakh names).
After the roll clean-up, 45.8 crore voters remain in the rolls of 12 states and union territories.
About 66.9 lakhs were deleted due to death, 1.3 crores due to multiple places of enrolment, 1.3 crores found missing at registered address, 3.1 crores permanently relocated; 12.7 lakhs are kept in ‘other’ category. “After purging the rolls, there are now 45.8 crore voters in 12 states/UTs. By deleting more than 6.5 crore ASDD and other voters who were there on the roll but did not vote and risked casting fake votes in their names, it has explained the purpose of all IRs in a pure and accurate way. Polling took place in Assam and Puducherry on April 9,” said an EC official. State-wise, the percentage of roll attrition (net attrition divided by total electorate before SIR) was highest in Andaman and Nicobar Islands at 16.6%, followed by UP at 13.2%, Gujarat at 13.1% and Chhattisgarh at 11.3%. West Bengal ranks fifth out of the 12 states/UTs in terms of purification percentage. Notably, apart from the exclusion of 27.1 lakh from the Bengal roll after the verdict, another 6 lakh were removed based on objections to their inclusion in the roll. West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Goa recorded net deletions of 10.9%, 10.6% and 10.2% respectively, while Puducherry saw a 7% net decline in its electorate. States like MP, Rajasthan, Kerala and Lakshadweep recorded less net deletion of 5.7%, 5.4%, 2.5% and 0.3% respectively. Among the 2 crore names added to the rolls across 12 states/UTs, UP (92.4 lakh) was the highest, followed by Tamil Nadu (35 lakh), Kerala (20.4 lakh), Rajasthan (15.4 lakh), Madhya Pradesh (12.9 lakh) and Gujarat (12.1 lakh).
