Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has renewed his “vote chori” allegation against the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Election Commission of India following the publication of Maharashtra’s draft electoral roll under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
More than 2.06 crore electors from Maharashtra’s previous electoral roll were not included in the draft list. The revised draft contains around 7.72 crore electors, compared with approximately 9.79 crore in the previous electoral roll.
Editorial Insight
Key Highlights
Important points readers should notice.
Electoral Roll Revision: Maharashtra’s SIR draft roll does not include more than 2.06 crore electors from the previous roll.
Political Charge: Rahul Gandhi has renewed his “vote chori” allegations against the BJP and Election Commission.
Election Authority Position: The 2.06 crore figure is not a final deletion figure; several administrative and verification-related reasons have been cited.
Correction Process: Electors can check the draft roll and submit claims or objections.
Political Impact: The issue has triggered a fresh Congress-BJP confrontation over electoral transparency.
Rahul Gandhi alleged that the developments showed that the BJP and what he termed the “Vote Chori Aayog” were changing their methods while retaining the same objective of ensuring a BJP victory. He again questioned the transparency of the electoral process and linked the latest figures to his broader allegations of irregularities in voter rolls.
The Congress has also intensified its attack over the issue. Party leader Pawan Khera said the exclusion of more than two crore electors from the draft roll validated the concerns earlier raised by Rahul Gandhi and the Congress regarding voter-list changes.
However, the figure of 2.06 crore should not be treated as the final number of voters being deleted from Maharashtra’s electoral rolls. Election authorities have said the names were not included in the draft list because enumeration forms could not be collected from those electors.
Editorial Analysis
Why This Matters
The issue matters because more than two crore electors are currently outside Maharashtra’s draft electoral roll, making the revision process a major political and electoral issue. At the same time, the figure represents draft-roll exclusions and should not automatically be described as permanent voter deletions.
According to election officials, the reasons include voters being absent or untraceable at their registered addresses, having shifted residence, being deceased, having duplicate or multiple registrations, or being registered elsewhere.
The Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer has provided a process for electors to check their names and raise claims or objections during the revision process. The official website also provides access to the draft electoral roll and SIR-related information.
The issue has nevertheless become a major political flashpoint, with the Congress questioning the electoral revision process and the BJP and Election Commission facing renewed scrutiny over the changes in voter numbers.
The controversy is likely to remain politically significant as the revision process continues and voters seek clarification or correction of their electoral records.
