Nearly 47 lakh names have been removed from Delhi's electoral roll after a revision exercise, a development that has triggered a political row with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of carrying out a large-scale purge. The first revised list, with the deletions reflecting the outcome of the door-to-door verification drive, was released late on Sunday. Officials associated with the process said the exercise was aimed at cleaning the rolls of deceased, migrated, and duplicate entries ahead of upcoming polls in the national capital.
Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal attacked the revision, alleging that the deletions were disproportionate and lacked transparency. He claimed the names of genuine voters, including senior citizens, migrant workers, and first-time electors, had been dropped without adequate verification. The AAP leader also questioned the timing of the exercise, suggesting it was being used to manipulate the electoral process in favour of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). His remarks sharpened the standoff between his party and the poll watchdog, with AAP leaders promising to mobilise affected voters to file claims before the September 30 deadline.
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Under the ECI's Special Summary Revision (SSR) framework, voters whose names do not figure in the first draft list can submit applications — Form 6 for new enrolments and Form 7 for deletions — at designated polling stations, electoral registration offices, or through the ECI's online voter portal. Booth-level officers (BLOs) have been deployed across Delhi's 70 assembly constituencies to assist claimants and verify supporting documents such as Aadhaar, ration cards, or utility bills. The September 30 cut-off applies specifically to inclusion in the second and final list, which is expected to be published later in the year.
Delhi's electorate, spread across 13,576 polling stations, has historically been one of the most closely contested urban battlegrounds in India, with vote-share differences between the BJP and AAP often thinner than two percentage points. The deletion of 47 lakh names — a sizeable chunk of the city's registered voters — therefore carries significant political implications. The BJP has maintained that the revision is a routine, non-partisan exercise mandated by law, while the Congress, Delhi's principal opposition in previous cycles, has also raised concerns about the scale of the deletions and demanded independent scrutiny.
With the September 30 window now open, the focus shifts to how effectively displaced voters can navigate the claims process. AAP has announced it will deploy volunteers to help applicants file forms and gather supporting documents, signalling that the deletion list is likely to remain a live political flashpoint until the final electoral roll is published.
