Election Commission’s Voter List ‘Clean-Up’ a Dangerous Exercise in Disenfranchisement

Mohammad Shafi, National Vice President, Social Democratic Party of India expresses its deep concern and strong opposition to the Election Commission of India’s recently announced Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, set to begin on November 4 across twelve states and Union Territories. While the Election Commission claims that the exercise aims to remove duplicate and deceased entries to make the rolls “error-free,” in reality, it represents a politically motivated attempt to manipulate the electorate and disenfranchise millions of marginalized citizens.

The timing of this revision, coming just months before crucial 2026 assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala, and several other states, raises serious questions about intent. What should have been a routine administrative process has now turned into a politically loaded operation. In Bihar, where the SIR was first implemented as a pilot project, more than 65 lakh names were deleted from the voter list—many of them belonging to the poor, minorities, Dalits, women, and migrant workers. Numerous reports and testimonies have revealed that these deletions were carried out without proper verification or notice, depriving genuine voters of their democratic right. The replication of such a flawed and opaque process across the country is nothing short of a nationwide voter purge.

It is deeply unfortunate that the Election Commission, once considered the guardian of India’s democracy, is now perceived as an instrument of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. By refusing to release detailed and machine-readable data on voter deletions and hiding behind excuses of privacy, the ECI has severely damaged its own credibility. Its conduct increasingly gives the impression of a Commission that serves partisan interests rather than the Constitution.

The right to vote is the cornerstone of democracy. It cannot be manipulated, restricted, or stolen through bureaucratic deception and technical procedures. The SDPI firmly believes that the present exercise is a weaponization of voter verification to tilt electoral outcomes in favour of the ruling establishment. This is an assault not only on the poor and marginalized but on the democratic soul of India itself. The ongoing Supreme Court hearings related to Bihar’s SIR should be expanded to cover all states before any deletions are finalized.

The Social Democratic Party of India urges the Election Commission to suspend the ongoing revision until there is full public disclosure, judicial review, and independent oversight. Every citizen, regardless of class, religion, or region, has the inalienable right to be counted and to vote. Any attempt to undermine that right is an attack on the very foundation of democracy.

Mohammad Shafi
National Vice President
Social Democratic Party of India