VOTER ROLLS SHAKE-UP: Over 1.1 Crore Names Axed in Massive ECI Cleanup Across Five States.

BIG ELECTORAL PURGE: SIR 2.0 Trims Voter Rolls Ahead of Key Polls.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, released the draft electoral rolls for five states and Union Territories—West Bengal, Rajasthan, Goa, Puducherry and Lakshadweep—under its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2.0 exercise, revealing a major cleanup of the voter database with a net reduction of over 1.1 crore names, or around 7.6% of the electorate across these regions.

The revision focused on removing Absent, Shifted, Dead and Duplicate (ASDD) entries to improve the accuracy of electoral rolls ahead of upcoming elections. West Bengal witnessed the highest number of deletions at approximately 58.2 lakh voters, bringing its electorate down from 7.66 crore to 7.08 crore, followed by Rajasthan with around 41.7 lakh deletions, reducing its voter base from 5.46 crore to 5.04 crore. Smaller but proportionally significant reductions were recorded in Goa (8.5%), Puducherry (10.1%) and Lakshadweep (2.5%).

In West Bengal, the data showed sharp regional variations, with Kolkata North recording the highest deletion rate at nearly 26%, followed by Kolkata South, while Purba Medinipur saw the lowest reduction at just over 3%. The ECI noted that the primary reason for deletions across all five regions was voters having shifted residence or being permanently absent from their registered addresses, while deceased voters formed the second-largest category.

A key concern highlighted in Bengal was the identification of more than 31 lakh “unmapped” voters—electors whose current entries could not be linked to the 2002 electoral rolls—who will now be required to appear for mandatory verification hearings to establish their eligibility.

The draft rolls have also triggered political reactions, particularly in West Bengal, where the Trinamool Congress (TMC) pointed out that only about 1.83 lakh names fell under duplicate or other questionable categories, arguing that the data effectively undermines earlier claims of millions of “illegal infiltrators” allegedly present on the state’s voter lists.

The ECI emphasized that the publication of draft rolls is not the final step and urged voters to verify their details, noting that those whose names are missing or wrongly deleted can apply for re-inclusion during the claims and objections period from December 16, 2025, to January 15, 2026.

Verification and hearings will continue until February 7, 2026, with the final electoral rolls scheduled to be published on February 14, 2026. Voters have been advised to check their status through the official ECI portal or their respective state Chief Electoral Officer websites using their EPIC numbers or personal details.