Breaking Update: The Election Commission (EC) has recently published revised draft voter lists for Madhya Pradesh and Kerala, revealing a significant number of deletions. This major cleanup is part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, aimed at ensuring accurate and up-to-date electoral rolls across various states. Millions of names have been removed due to various reasons, including deceased voters, untraceable individuals, and those who have moved.
Massive Voter List Revision in Madhya Pradesh
In Madhya Pradesh, the draft voter list shows a substantial reduction in the total number of electors. A staggering 42,74,160 names have been removed from the rolls. This brings the state's current voter count down to 5,31,31,983 as of December 23, 2025, compared to 5,74,06,143 recorded on October 27 previously.
Reasons for Deletions in Madhya Pradesh:
- Deceased Voters: More than 8.46 lakh individuals who have passed away.
- Untraceable Electors: Over 8.42 lakh voters who could not be located.
- Shifted Residences: Nearly 22.78 lakh people who have permanently moved to new addresses.
- Duplicate Entries: Approximately 2.76 lakh identical voter records.
- Miscellaneous Categories: Around 29,900 names removed under other classifications.
Officials also identified about 8.65 lakh unmapped voters in Madhya Pradesh. These are individuals whose names appear on the current rolls, but their data is missing from records dating back to 2003. Notices will be issued to these voters, who will then need to provide necessary documents to Electoral Registration Officers to confirm their eligibility.
Kerala Sees Over 24 Lakh Voter Removals
Kerala's Chief Electoral Officer, Rathan U Kelkar, confirmed that the state's draft list also reflects a significant cleanup. Following the enumeration stage of the SIR process, over 24 lakh names have been removed from the voter rolls. The revised draft now lists 2,54,42,352 voters, a decrease from the pre-revision total of 2,78,50,855.
Key Reasons for Deletions in Kerala:
- Deceased Voters: Over 6.49 lakh individuals who are no longer living.
- Untraceable Electors: Around 6.45 lakh voters who could not be traced.
- Permanently Shifted: More than 8.16 lakh voters who have moved their residences.
- Duplicate Entries: Approximately 1.36 lakh redundant records.
- Other Categories: About 1.60 lakh names removed under various other reasons.
The EC's Special Intensive Revision in Kerala also included a comprehensive voter-mapping exercise, which was approximately 93 percent complete by December 18. Most cases of unmapped voters were reported from Thiruvananthapuram, Kottayam, and Ernakulam. Booth-level officers (BLOs) are responsible for issuing notices and outlining the required documents for hearings concerning these unmapped voters. BLOs also made three household visits before marking any voter as untraceable.
Next Steps and Future Revisions
For those whose names are not included in the draft rolls, the EC advises them to apply afresh for inclusion. The public has an opportunity to file objections to these draft lists until January 22. The final, updated voter rolls for both states are scheduled to be officially published on February 21.
This voter list revision exercise is a nationwide effort. The first phase was conducted in Bihar in September, ahead of its assembly elections. The ongoing SIR will also cover several other regions, including:
- Andaman and Nicobar Islands
- Chhattisgarh
- Goa
- Gujarat
- Lakshadweep
- Puducherry
- Rajasthan
- Tamil Nadu
- Uttar Pradesh
- West Bengal
This extensive cleanup by the Election Commission is crucial for maintaining the integrity of India's democratic process and ensuring fair and accurate elections.
