Mysuru: Mysuru district is set to witness a major reduction in its electoral roll, with around 5.57 lakh voter entries identified for deletion following the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
The district had 27,99,693 registered voters when the SIR process began on June 30. After the verification exercise was completed on August 17, officials identified 5,57,184 entries, or nearly 19.9% of the total electorate, under categories such as absent, shifted, deceased, duplicate and other cases requiring removal or correction.
Deputy commissioner and district election officer Lakshmikanth Reddy said the identified names would be excluded from the draft electoral roll to be published as part of the SIR process.
Narasimharaja records highest deletion
Among Mysuru’s Assembly constituencies, Narasimharaja has recorded the highest number of voter entries identified for deletion, with more than 99,000 names.
Krishnaraja follows with around 86,000 entries, while Chamaraja has about 85,000 and Chamundeshwari around 75,000 entries marked for removal.
The changes are expected to significantly alter the size of the electoral rolls in these constituencies. In Narasimharaja, the electorate is expected to fall from around 3.3 lakh to below 2.3 lakh.
Similarly, Chamundeshwari’s voter count is projected to decline from around 3.6 lakh to below 2.8 lakh after the identified entries are removed.
At the other end of the scale, Periyapatna has recorded the lowest number of proposed deletions, with around 22,800 voter entries identified during the verification exercise.
Duplicate registrations identified
Officials said the SIR exercise was aimed at identifying entries that no longer meet the requirements for inclusion in the electoral roll.
The categories examined included voters who had permanently shifted from their registered address, deceased voters, duplicate registrations and people who could not be verified at their listed addresses.
Officials cited the case of a booth-level officer as an example of how duplicate registrations were detected. The official’s name had reportedly appeared on the electoral rolls in his home district as well as his place of work and Mysuru.
During the verification process, three separate forms were generated against the same person. After the officer retained the valid registration in Mysuru, the other two entries were identified for deletion as permanently shifted registrations.
Such cases have contributed to the large number of entries being proposed for removal from the electoral roll.
Around 1.3 lakh absent voters flagged
The administration has also identified around 1.3 lakh voters under the absent category.
Officials said these cases would require scrutiny because prolonged absence from the registered address can indicate a change of residence, duplicate registration or incorrect voter information.
The identification of absent voters does not necessarily mean that every such person has been permanently removed from the electoral process. The entries will be dealt with through the prescribed verification and correction process before the electoral roll is finalised.
The SIR exercise is intended to ensure that electoral records accurately reflect eligible voters residing in the respective constituencies.
Corrections to be handled separately
The district administration has also identified cases involving discrepancies in voter information, including differences in spelling, age and parentage-related details.
Officials said minor spelling corrections could be handled by the Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO).
However, cases involving significant discrepancies or doubts regarding a voter’s identity will require further verification. In such instances, notices will be issued to the concerned voters, asking them to appear before the authorities and provide supporting documents.
This process is expected to give voters an opportunity to clarify discrepancies before their names or details are altered in the electoral roll.
Congress raises concerns
While the district administration has described the exercise as a process to clean and update the electoral roll, political representatives have raised concerns over the scale of the proposed deletions.
Showkat Pasha, former corporator and Mysuru District Congress Committee vice-president, said the administration’s figures indicated that around 5.5 lakh voters could be removed from the electoral roll.
He also said a similar number of voters could receive notices over logical discrepancies involving names, age details and parentage or progeny-related information.
The concerns underline the importance of ensuring that genuine voters are not inadvertently excluded while duplicate, deceased or shifted entries are removed.
Administration says no complaints received
According to district election officer Lakshmikanth Reddy, no complaints have been received regarding the SIR process during the 49-day verification period.
The administration maintains that the exercise has helped clean the electoral roll by identifying entries that require deletion, correction or further verification.
The next major step will be the publication of the draft electoral roll containing the changes identified during the SIR exercise. Voters whose names or details are affected will have the opportunity to follow the prescribed procedure for raising objections or seeking corrections.
The substantial reduction expected in Mysuru’s electoral rolls makes the upcoming draft publication particularly significant. While the administration says the exercise will improve the accuracy of voter records, the verification and correction stages will be crucial to ensure that eligible voters continue to remain on the electoral roll.
