Saurabh Mukherjee
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has released the final Supplementary List following the adjudication of voters excluded during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, revealing a significant reduction in the state’s electorate ahead of the Assembly elections.
According to the data made public late Monday (April 6) night, 27,16,393 of the 60,06,675 voters whose names were placed under adjudication have been marked as “deleted”.
With the completion of the process, the total number of electors in West Bengal has declined from 7.66 crore at the beginning of the revision exercise to 6.77 crore, indicating that nearly 89 lakh names — or 11.62% of the electorate — have been removed from the rolls.
District-wise figures show that the highest number of adjudication cases were recorded in Murshidabad with about 11 lakh names under review, followed by Malda (8.28 lakh), South 24 Parganas (5.22 lakh) and North 24 Parganas (5 lakh).
Jhargram and Kalimpong reported the lowest numbers, with 6,682 and 6,790 cases respectively. In percentage terms, the highest deletions were reported from Matua-dominated Nadia at 77.86%, followed by Hooghly (70.33%), Purba Bardhaman (57.4%), North 24 Parganas (55.08%) and Paschim Bardhaman (53.72%).
Minority-dominated districts such as Malda, Murshidabad, North Dinajpur and South 24 Parganas witnessed comparatively lower deletion percentages — 28.91%, 41.33%, 36.84% and 42.70% respectively — although the absolute number of deletions in these regions remains substantial. In Kolkata, deletions accounted for 28.97% of electors in Kolkata-North and 27.31% in Kolkata-South.
The adjudication process was conducted by 705 judicial officers under Supreme Court supervision.
The apex court on Monday declined a plea seeking extension of time before freezing the electoral rolls. The SIR exercise had begun on October 27 last year, and after publication of the revised list on February 28, the electorate had already reduced to 7.04 crore, including the 60.06 lakh voters flagged for scrutiny.
As of midnight Monday, electoral rolls for constituencies voting in the first phase on April 23 stand frozen, while those affected in later phases have time until April 9 to approach tribunals for reconsideration. However, the appellate tribunals are yet to become operational.
Analysis of the data suggests that large-scale deletions closely correspond to earlier “unmapping” trends, where voters lacked linkage to the 2002 electoral rolls during the draft stage. While the ECI maintains that each case was individually examined and that legal remedies remain available, the Supreme Court declined interim relief, observing, “We do not want to rush it,” and noting that the 19 appellate tribunals could take up to 60 days to dispose of appeals.
With tribunal hearings yet to begin and electoral deadlines already passed for several constituencies, the revision process has effectively concluded for the ongoing election cycle, raising concerns over access to electoral participation even as authorities emphasise the objective of maintaining an updated and verified voter list.
According to the data made public late Monday (April 6) night, 27,16,393 of the 60,06,675 voters whose names were placed under adjudication have been marked as “deleted”.
With the completion of the process, the total number of electors in West Bengal has declined from 7.66 crore at the beginning of the revision exercise to 6.77 crore, indicating that nearly 89 lakh names — or 11.62% of the electorate — have been removed from the rolls.
District-wise figures show that the highest number of adjudication cases were recorded in Murshidabad with about 11 lakh names under review, followed by Malda (8.28 lakh), South 24 Parganas (5.22 lakh) and North 24 Parganas (5 lakh).
Jhargram and Kalimpong reported the lowest numbers, with 6,682 and 6,790 cases respectively. In percentage terms, the highest deletions were reported from Matua-dominated Nadia at 77.86%, followed by Hooghly (70.33%), Purba Bardhaman (57.4%), North 24 Parganas (55.08%) and Paschim Bardhaman (53.72%).
Minority-dominated districts such as Malda, Murshidabad, North Dinajpur and South 24 Parganas witnessed comparatively lower deletion percentages — 28.91%, 41.33%, 36.84% and 42.70% respectively — although the absolute number of deletions in these regions remains substantial. In Kolkata, deletions accounted for 28.97% of electors in Kolkata-North and 27.31% in Kolkata-South.
The adjudication process was conducted by 705 judicial officers under Supreme Court supervision.
The apex court on Monday declined a plea seeking extension of time before freezing the electoral rolls. The SIR exercise had begun on October 27 last year, and after publication of the revised list on February 28, the electorate had already reduced to 7.04 crore, including the 60.06 lakh voters flagged for scrutiny.
As of midnight Monday, electoral rolls for constituencies voting in the first phase on April 23 stand frozen, while those affected in later phases have time until April 9 to approach tribunals for reconsideration. However, the appellate tribunals are yet to become operational.
Analysis of the data suggests that large-scale deletions closely correspond to earlier “unmapping” trends, where voters lacked linkage to the 2002 electoral rolls during the draft stage. While the ECI maintains that each case was individually examined and that legal remedies remain available, the Supreme Court declined interim relief, observing, “We do not want to rush it,” and noting that the 19 appellate tribunals could take up to 60 days to dispose of appeals.
With tribunal hearings yet to begin and electoral deadlines already passed for several constituencies, the revision process has effectively concluded for the ongoing election cycle, raising concerns over access to electoral participation even as authorities emphasise the objective of maintaining an updated and verified voter list.
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