Maharashtra SIR exercise: Will 1.8 crore voters face deletion from draft electoral roll?

Around 18 crore voters in Maharashtra may face deletion from the draft electoral roll as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision SIR of Electoral Rolls 2026 according to data shared by the State Chief Electoral Officer S Chockalingam on Wednesday news agency IANS reportedOf the states total 97854049 electors Enumeration Forms have been distributed to 96954766 voters or 9908 per cent Chockalingam said at a press conference after chairing a meeting with political partiesHowever only 76098153 forms or 7777 per cent have been returned signed and digitisedA total of 18060697 forms or 1846 per cent remain uncollected under the ASDD category which covers electors who are Absent Shifted Deceased or Duplicate Action is pending in the case of another 3695199 electors accounting for 378 per centMaharashtra may therefore see around 180 crore voters deleted from the draft electoral rollThe number is not unusual and we have seen deletion of around 1318 per cent at national level in other states Chockalingam saidHe said voters facing deletion could submit Form 6 to register as votersUrban districts record high proportion of ASDD electorsElection authorities said the proportion of ASDD electors was particularly high in urban centres including Thane Nagpur Mumbai Pune Palghar and RaigadIn Mumbai and Mumbai Suburban districts 63 per cent of forms have been digitised while 30 per cent remain uncollected under the ASDD categoryUnder the revised timeline the deadline for collecting Enumeration Forms from electors is August 17The Draft Electoral Roll will be published on August 24 following which citizens will have until September 23 to file claims and objections The final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on October 27BLOs political party agents to conduct verificationTo ensure that eligible voters are not left out of the electoral roll District Election Officers have been instructed to enforce strict verification protocolsBooth Level Officers BLOs will hold joint meetings with Booth Level Agents BLAs of political parties and provide them with ASDD listsBLOs and BLAs will also conduct doortodoor visits at designated residences to assist voters in submitting their formsMeeting minutes will have to be recorded and uploaded on ECINET through the BLO App while ASDD lists will be published on official district websitesAuthorities said voters who refuse to accept sign or submit the Enumeration Form will not be included in the Draft Electoral RollElection Commission to use checks to identify duplicate entriesTo prevent duplicate entries across electoral rolls the commission is using Photo Similar Entries PSE and Data Similar Entries DSE checksWhere an elector appears at multiple locations their enumeration form will be accepted only at their current primary residence Other entries will be flagged with the remark Already Enrolled under the Uncollectable EF categoryUnder Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act 1950 making a false statement or declaration in connection with electoral rolls is a punishable offence carrying imprisonment of up to one year a fine or bothSections 17 and 18 prohibit registration in more than one placeCopies of the Draft Electoral Roll both hard and soft copies will be made available at government offices district websites and the Chief Electoral Officers portal and will also be distributed to recognised political partiesEligible citizens whose names do not appear in the draft roll as well as new voters who turn 18 on or before October 1 2026 can apply for inclusion using Form 6 during the claims periodObjections to entries in the draft roll can be submitted using Form 7The State Election Commission has also directed local body authorities to extend full cooperation as the Assembly electoral rolls will be used for upcoming Local Authority electionsWith IANS inputs