In a major political dispute, opposition parties have strongly criticised the Massive deletion of voter names from Uttar Pradesh’s draft electoral rolls following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, alleging a deliberate attempt to skew election outcomes and demanding an independent investigation.https://www.eci.gov.in/
According to official data released on January 7, 2026, the Election Commission of India (ECI) published a revised draft voter list for Uttar Pradesh that shows approximately 2.89 crore names removed from the state’s electoral roll — almost one in every five registered voters — ahead of the upcoming elections.
The updated list now includes around 12.55 crore voters, down from the previous total of about 15.44 crore recorded before the SIR exercise began.
Opposition Accuses Authorities of Manipulation
Opposition leaders have criticised the deletion figures as excessively high and politically motivated, arguing that the process has disenfranchised large numbers of eligible citizens. They have described the scale of removals as a “big conspiracy” and urged both the Election Commission and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to explain the irregularities publicly.
Senior opposition figures claim that such extensive cuts to the voter list could undermine the democratic process and disproportionately affect specific communities, intensifying political tensions in the state. Several parties have called for a full, independent probe into the SIR exercise and the methodology behind the deletions.
ECI and BJP Respond
While the Election Commission has stated that the voter roll update is part of its scheduled SIR process — designed to ensure accuracy by removing duplicate, outdated, or ineligible entries — opposition leaders have rejected this explanation as insufficient. The ECI has said the draft list will be subject to claims and objections, allowing individuals until February 6, 2026 to request corrections or reinstatement of their names.
The BJP, meanwhile, has dismissed the criticism as politically driven and emphatically denied allegations of manipulation, asserting that the voter revision process is neutral and legally mandated.
Next Steps for Voter Verification
Under electoral rules, citizens whose names do not appear in the draft list have the right to file objections or submit new enrolment applications during the specified window. The Election Commission will review these submissions before finalising the voter rolls ahead of future elections.
🗳️ UP Voter List Issue: Opposition Questions Deletion of Nearly 3 Crore Names
In Uttar Pradesh, a big political debate has started after the Election Commission removed about 2.89 crore voter names from the draft voter list during a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The opposition parties have strongly criticised this move and are demanding a proper investigation.
📢 Opposition Raises Concerns
The Congress party said this large number of deletions is not normal.
Congress state president Ajay Rai called it a “big conspiracy” and asked for a full inquiry. He said many voters had filled their forms, but their names were still removed.
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari also attacked the BJP and said that removing so many names was like a “murder of democracy.” He warned that such actions can hurt people’s right to vote.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) also raised serious questions. SP leaders said the Election Commission must act fairly and independently.
SP chief Shyam Lal Pal claimed that in some recent elections, voters were stopped from reaching polling booths and that officials helped in unfair voting.
Another SP leader, Fakhrul Hasan Chaand, said the party will make sure that PDA voters (Backward classes, Dalits and minorities) are not left out.
📊 What the Election Commission Says
The Election Commission of India (ECI) said the names were removed after a detailed checking process to keep the voter list correct and clean.
According to official data:
- 46.2 lakh names were removed because the voters had died
- 2.17 crore names were removed because people had moved away, were not found at their old address, or could not be contacted
- 25.5 lakh names were removed because they were registered at more than one place
After this process, the new draft voter list of Uttar Pradesh now has around 12.5 crore voters, compared to about 15.4 crore earlier.
UP Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa said that around 12.55 crore people returned their forms, confirming they should stay on the voter list. Based on this and field checks by officials, the draft list was prepared.
🗓️ People Can Still Get Their Names Back
The Election Commission has given time for people to correct mistakes.
- Claims and objections period: January 6 to February 6, 2026
- Anyone whose name is missing can apply to add it back
- Officials will check all requests and finalise the list by February 27, 2026
More than 400 Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and 2,000 Assistant EROs have been assigned to handle these cases.
🧠 Why This Matters
Voting is a basic right in a democracy. That is why the deletion of so many names has created tension. While the Election Commission says it is only cleaning the voter list, opposition parties believe many genuine voters may have been removed.
The final voter list will decide how many people can vote in the next elections, so the coming weeks are very important for lakhs of voters in Uttar Pradesh.
