Explainer: Why fewer voters were deleted in Odisha compared to several other states
The draft electoral roll published on July 5 had 3,13,87,034 while the final roll, published on September 21, had 3,16,32,754 voters.
In Odisha, the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls concluded with a 5.3% reduction in the voter count, amounting to around 17.67 lakh names deleted. This deletion rate was lower than several other states that underwent the SIR process. In comparison, Kerala saw a 3.22% deletion rate, while Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar had rates of 5.74%, 5.97%, and 5.95%, respectively.
Only a few states like Puducherry, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh had higher deletion rates. Odisha's draft-stage deletion rate was also relatively low at 6.03%, the second-lowest among the 30 states and Union Territories covered, behind Mizoram.
Nationally, voter deletions primarily occurred due to migration (70%), deceased electors (21%), and duplicate or multiple-place registrations (9%). Political scientists suggest that certain groups, such as women, rural residents, low-literacy individuals, ethnic minorities, youth, and people with disabilities, are more susceptible to being disenfranchised.
In Odisha, 93.97% of the enumeration form returners were retained in the final roll, and only about 6.03% were excluded at the draft stage. The state also had a lower number of duplicate registrations, with 8.32 lakh exclusions being deceased voters, 10.07 lakh due to permanent shifts or untraceability, and 1.58 lakh classified as duplicate registrations.
Odisha's voter deletions were comparatively lower due to several factors, including a high return rate for enumeration forms, low duplicate registrations, seasonal or circular migration patterns, and prior scrutiny of electoral rolls in 2023. Opposition parties, including the Biju Janata Dal, urged the Election Commission to avoid deleting migrant workers' names from the rolls.
However, allegations of discrepancies in the deletion process emerged, with the BJD claiming a lack of transparency and the Congress seeking more public awareness to assist affected voters. Despite these concerns, the final roll publication marked the end of the SIR process, and affected voters could appeal to the District Collector and Chief Electoral Officer for reconsideration.
Written by urgent.news from Hindustan Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
