Tamil Nadu Electoral Roll Revision Concludes with Significant Changes
The month-long Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Tamil Nadu concluded on Sunday. This process brought substantial changes to the state's voter database. Officials reported a total of 20 lakh people applied for inclusion in the electoral rolls during this period. Simultaneously, 35,646 individuals requested deletion of their names from the voter list.
Massive Deletions Reshape State Electorate
The SIR exercise removed a staggering 97.37 lakh voters from the draft electoral roll. This reduction brought the total electorate down from 6.41 crore to 5.43 crore. Deletions accounted for approximately 15% of the previous voter count. Among these deletions, around 13,03,487 applications came through online channels. The remaining deletions occurred through special camps organized across the state.
State additional chief electoral officer V Sridhar provided insights into these numbers. He explained that 27 lakh voters were removed due to death. Nearly 66.4 lakh voters had shifted from their registered addresses. Most applicants seeking inclusion fell under the shifted category according to Sridhar.
"There are more who submitted Form 6 through the camps. We are tallying these too," Sridhar told reporters. "The camps saw mostly minimal turnout in recent times."
Political Parties Participate Actively in Revision Process
Political organizations submitted numerous forms during the revision period. Parties collectively filed 165 Form 6 submissions for voter inclusion. AIADMK led this effort with 66 submissions, followed by BJP with 57, and DMK with 42.
These parties also submitted 128 exclusion forms (Form 7). BJP submitted 65 of these forms while AIADMK submitted 63. Officials clarified that deletion forms primarily concerned deceased individuals or those who had relocated. These people's names had mistakenly appeared in the draft electoral rolls.
Chennai Records Highest Voter Removal Percentage
Chennai witnessed particularly dramatic changes during the revision process. The city recorded removal of 35% of its voters from the electoral rolls. District election officer and Greater Chennai Corporation commissioner J Kumaragurubaran did not respond to specific queries about this breakdown.
Special camps in Chennai remained quiet on the final Sunday of the revision period. Only one or two voters appeared sporadically at these locations. A booth level officer (BLO) working at MEASI school in Harbour constituency reported receiving 250 physical forms.
"Most voters submit the forms online, as the verification is directly done with Aadhaar," the BLO explained. "Whereas in physical forms, they have to give self-attested proofs with more paperwork."
Final Electoral Roll Publication Scheduled
The final electoral roll will be published on February 17. Only those individuals whose names appear in this final version will receive permission to vote in the upcoming assembly elections. This publication marks the conclusion of the intensive revision process that has significantly altered Tamil Nadu's voter landscape.
