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New Delhi: More than 10.56 lakh names have been removed from Assam’s electoral rolls following a Special Revision exercise conducted ahead of the state Assembly elections, scheduled in less than six months. According to the integrated draft electoral rolls released on Saturday by the Election Commission of India, Assam now has 2,51,09,754 registered voters, excluding 93,021 D-voters, or “doubtful voters”.
The Election Commission said the deletions were carried out after verifying entries related to deaths, migration and duplication, with the objective of ensuring an error-free and updated voter list before the polls.
Of the 10,56,291 names removed from the rolls, 4,78,992 were deleted after verification confirmed the voters had died. Another 5,23,680 names were struck off as the voters were found to have shifted from their registered addresses, while 53,619 entries were identified as demographically similar and flagged for correction or duplication.
The Special Revision included a large-scale house-to-house verification exercise conducted between November 22 and December 20. According to officials, the process covered 61,03,103 households across the state.
D-voters are a specific category of voters in Assam who have been disenfranchised due to alleged deficiencies in citizenship documents. Identified by special tribunals under the Foreigners Act, 1946, individuals declared as D-voters are not issued voter identity cards.
However, the Election Commission clarified that all details related to D-voters — including names, ages and photographs — have been carried forward unchanged in the draft electoral rolls.
Voters have been given time until January 22 to file claims and objections related to the draft rolls. The final electoral rolls will be published on February 10, the Commission said in an official statement.
The verification drive involved 35 District Election Officers, 126 Electoral Registration Officers, 1,260 Assistant Electoral Registration Officers, nearly 29,656 Booth Level Officers and 2,578 BLO Supervisors. Political parties also deployed over 61,500 Booth Level Agents to monitor the process.
While a Special Intensive Revision is underway in 12 states and Union Territories where elections are due, the Election Commission ordered a separate Special Revision for Assam, citing its unique citizenship framework. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had earlier said citizenship verification in the state is nearing completion under Supreme Court supervision.
Following rationalisation, Assam now has 31,486 polling stations.
