The Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka officially published the final electoral roll this week, confirming the removal of 99,32,185 names from the state’s voter list. The development follows the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), a comprehensive exercise conducted to clean and update the database of eligible voters across the state. Following these deletions, Karnataka’s total electorate has shrunk from a previous count of 5,54,32,314 to the current figure of 4,55,00,011.
Election authorities have detailed the reasons behind this significant reduction in the voter base. The vast majority of the exclusions occurred during the door-to-door verification phase. According to the state election office, 80.62 lakh names were removed because the individuals had either shifted their residence or could not be traced at their registered addresses. Additionally, 16.39 lakh names were deleted following confirmation of the voters’ deaths, while over 7 lakh entries were struck off after being identified as duplicates.
A remaining 3.83 lakh names were removed under an unspecified category. Election officials clarified that this specific group primarily consisted of individuals who refused to sign the required verification documents during the audit process. Despite these large-scale removals, the final data highlights that women voters currently outnumber men in the state, with 2.29 crore female voters compared to 2.25 crore male voters. The rolls also include 2,841 third-gender voters, over 6.83 lakh young voters aged between 18 and 19, and more than 3.92 lakh senior citizens aged 85 and above.
The massive scale of this cleanup has triggered a political debate within Karnataka. The Congress party has expressed strong reservations, raising concerns about the potential mass exclusion of minorities, the poor, and members of marginalised communities. Allegations of “vote theft” have been levelled, with the party citing instances where Form 7 applications—used to request the deletion of names—appeared to be submitted automatically or through third-party intermediaries without proper individual verification. These concerns have led to calls for deeper investigations into the procedural integrity of the revision process.
In response to the concerns regarding potential errors in the new electoral roll, the Chief Electoral Officer’s office has announced the launch of an enrolment drive. This initiative is designed to assist genuine voters who may have been wrongly excluded during the SIR exercise. Eligible citizens are being encouraged to verify their status immediately by visiting the Election Commission’s Electoral Search Portal. By selecting the “Search by EPIC” tab and entering their unique voter identification number, residents can confirm whether their names remain on the active list.
For those who find that their names have been inadvertently removed, the election authorities have provided a clear pathway to restore their registration. Affected individuals can download the necessary forms and apply for re-enrolment using Form 6 through the Voters’ Service Portal. Alternatively, citizens can coordinate directly with their local Booth Level Officers to submit the required documentation. The election office has emphasised that this follow-up drive aims to ensure that no legitimate voter is denied their right to participate in the democratic process due to administrative errors during the database cleanup.
While the draft electoral roll stage had initially flagged over 1.07 crore potential deletions, the subsequent claims and objections window allowed for the addition of 8.64 lakh voters, bringing the final net reduction to just under the one-crore mark. As the state moves forward, the focus remains on ensuring the accuracy of the roll while addressing the grievances raised by political stakeholders regarding the transparency of the voter verification operations.
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