About 130m names removed under voter roll revision: Declared dead: Indian voters fight to get back on electoral rolls

NEW DELHI: Indian tailor Kamta Prasad and 53-year-old private school teacher Kamal Lal are among 130 million names removed from India's electoral rolls due to a voter roll revision, causing widespread protests and challenges for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government. The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) led to deletions for reasons including "logical discrepancies" and people being recorded as deceased, affecting many voters who must prove their lives and residences to be reinstated.

Prasad, affected within Delhi's 4.2 million voters, has struggled to support his family while repeatedly visiting government offices to reverse the error. Opposition parties and youth groups staged daily protests, alleging the Election Commission chief manipulated the revision to benefit his Bharatiya Janata Party. The commission maintains it removed ineligible voters and allows claimants to submit evidence and appeals.

However, many voters, like Prasad and Lal, find themselves in bureaucratic mazes, forced to provide additional proof or register anew as citizens, jeopardizing their access to subsidies and welfare programs.