Mumbai, September 10 (Daily Kiran) : A comprehensive review of Maharashtra’s electoral rolls has revealed significant discrepancies, affecting over 1.22 crore voters. This finding comes as part of the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) campaign aimed at refining the state’s voter list.
During this process, officials identified data inconsistencies and technical errors in the enumeration forms of these voters. In response, election authorities have commenced the issuance of formal notices to those impacted. Recipients must provide valid documentation to verify their voter identity.
The initiative is designed to ensure that the voter list is accurate, updated, and transparent. Officials emphasize that the records will only be finalized after thorough verification of the submitted documents.
Under current guidelines, objections from individuals living outside the relevant assembly constituencies will not be entertained. All affected voters have been formally notified to submit necessary evidence to substantiate their claims.
Prior to the SIR campaign, Maharashtra had 9,78,54,049 registered voters. Following field verification of enumeration forms, the Election Commission released a draft voter list on August 31, which included 7,71,65,562 voters, representing 78.86 percent of the total. This list comprises 3,95,89,905 male voters, 3,75,72,570 female voters, and 3,087 transgender voters.
Approximately 2,06,88,487 voters, or 21.14 percent of the previous list, were removed. Key reasons for these removals include the identification of around 34 lakh deceased voters and the elimination of 17 lakh duplicate entries across various assembly constituencies.
Among the 7.71 crore voters on the draft list, 1,22,24,000 records showed technical deficiencies. These included inconsistencies in relative information for 62,48,281 voters and missing mapping for 59,75,626 voters.
Significant data discrepancies were found in multiple assembly constituencies, including Malad, Dharavi, Panvel, and Nagpur, with over 100,000 inconsistencies reported in each area.
Election Commission sources confirm that notices have been dispatched, and voter status will be verified only after additional evidence is assessed. In light of concerns raised by political parties regarding potential removals of specific community voters, the election administration has implemented stringent procedural safeguards.
Following reports from Jharkhand, where party representatives submitted large-scale applications to remove certain names, the state’s Chief Electoral Officer has instructed the Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai and all district collectors to exercise caution when addressing claims and objections. Basic residential verifications for voters on the draft list have already been conducted, confirming their eligibility.
While Form-7 is available for challenging or requesting the removal of entries, objections will only be accepted from registered voters residing within the relevant assembly constituency. Anyone filing an objection must provide valid proof of the ineligibility of the voter in question.
Sources indicate that before any final decision is made, the challenged voter will be granted a formal opportunity to participate in a hearing and present evidence in their defense.
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