Maharashtra SIR shocker, over 2 crore names dropped from draft voter list

More than 2 crore electors, or 21.14 per cent of Maharashtra's previous voter base, have not figured in the state's draft electoral roll following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), according to poll officials.The draft electoral roll for all 288 Assembly constituencies was published on Monday, with 7,71,65,562 electors making it to the revised list. This represents 78.86 per cent of the state's previous voter base of 9,78,54,049.The draft roll comprises 3,95,89,905 men, 3,75,72,570 women and 3,087 third-gender voters. Maharashtra draft voter list According to election authorities, 2,06,88,487 electors were not included in the draft list because their enumeration forms could not be collected. The reasons include voters being absent or untraceable at their registered addresses, having shifted residences, being deceased, having duplicate or multiple registrations, or being registered elsewhere.The category also includes voters who did not fill in or submit their enumeration forms. Among the districts, Pune recorded the highest number of uncollectable enumeration forms at 28.6 lakh, followed by Thane with 28.5 lakh, Mumbai Suburban with 26.5 lakh, Nagpur with 14.43 lakh, Nashik with 10.27 lakh and Mumbai City with 9.5 lakh, officials said.CLAIMS, OBJECTIONS WINDOW OPENVoters whose names are missing from the draft electoral roll can file claims and objections from August 31 to September 30.Those seeking inclusion can submit Form 6 along with the required declaration. Objections to an entry can be filed through Form 7, while corrections to details such as name, address, age or gender can be sought through Form 8.A total of 288 Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and more than 7,000 Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) have been appointed for the state's 288 Assembly constituencies.The process involving claims, objections and notices is scheduled to continue until October 29. The final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on November 4, according to the Election Commission's timetable.CONGRESS REVIVES 'VOTE CHORI' CHARGEThe massive number of exclusions immediately triggered a political row, with the Congress alleging that the figures vindicated Rahul Gandhi's earlier claims of "vote chori" and "rigged" elections.Senior party leader Pawan Khera questioned why the BJP and Election Commission had expressed "complete confidence" in the 2024 voter list when the Congress had raised concerns over what it described as an unusually high increase in voters between the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.Khera said the Election Commission had acknowledged that nearly 40 lakh electors were added in just five months between the 2024 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections.The BJP-ECI's lies are now hanging like an albatross around their neck," Khera said.In a post on X, he claimed that Rahul Gandhi and the Congress had flagged the increase in the voter count at the time, but their concerns were dismissed by the BJP and the Election Commission."Now two years later, given the large number of deletions in the SIR, the BJP-ECI duo has stripped its own lies naked before the country," Khera said."If the voter list was impeccable just two years ago, why are nearly 2 crore voters being excluded now? If it wasn't beyond reproach, why did the BJP-ECI insist so confidently that it was?" he asked.Khera also questioned what the earlier voter list meant for the political outcome in the state, asking: "And what does this faulty voter list from two years ago say about the legitimacy of Devendra Fadnavis as the chief minister and the BJP as Maharashtra's ruling party?""The writing is on the wall: Vote chori is real. Rigged elections are real. Imposed governments are real," he claimed.- Ends(With PTI inputs)Published By: Karishma Saurabh KalitaPublished On: Sep 1, 2026 10:53 IST