A massive voter list revision exercise in West Bengal has led to the removal of nearly 91 lakh names from the electoral rolls, according to data released by the Election Commission of India. The revision has reduced the total number of registered voters from 766 lakh to 677 lakh following the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
The data, which was submitted to the Supreme Court of India, also accounts for individuals whose verification or adjudication is still pending. However, with the deadline for filing nominations for Phase 1 ending at midnight, any further changes to the voter list are no longer permitted—effectively rendering many of these individuals ineligible to cast their votes in the upcoming phase.
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Additionally, the deadline for filing nominations for the second phase concluded on April 2, further tightening the window for any corrections or inclusions in the electoral rolls.
The development has caused concern within the ruling All India Trinamool Congress, which secured a decisive victory in the 2021 Assembly elections with a margin of 42.4 lakh votes. Party leaders, particularly in Kolkata, are now grappling with the challenge of recovering support from voters whose names have been removed.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission is yet to release the final figures following the completion of the revision process, leaving scope for further clarification on the extent and impact of the changes.
(This story is published from a syndicated feed)
