Karnataka draft SIR rolls show alarming deletions

Karnataka draft SIR rolls show alarming deletions

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, Aug 26, 2026: Karnataka’s draft electoral rolls released after the enumeration phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) have revealed a sharp decline in the number of registered voters, with 1.08 crore names deleted from the rolls.

The deletions have reduced the State’s electorate by about 19.5%, from around 5.54 crore voters before the SIR exercise to 4.46 crore in the draft rolls. Karnataka’s deletion rate is among the highest recorded by major States that have undertaken the SIR exercise.

The deletions are particularly striking in Bengaluru. Five Assembly constituencies — Bommanahalli, Dasarahalli, B.T.M. Layout, Vijayanagar and C.V. Raman Nagar — recorded deletions of more than 50% of their respective electoral rolls. Bommanahalli recorded the highest deletion rate at 54.8%. About half of the total deletions in the State came from just 36 of the 224 Assembly constituencies, including 28 in the core Bengaluru region.

The analysis also found that deletions were concentrated in highly urbanised areas. However, a high proportion of voters were marked as ‘Shifted’ or ‘Absent’ even in several rural constituencies. Voters classified as ‘Deceased’ accounted for 15.2% of the deletions.

The scale of deletions has raised questions about transparency in the revision process. The Election Commission has not released the electors-to-population ratio for the States undergoing SIR, while Karnataka’s deletion lists have reportedly not been made available in an easily searchable format.

The State’s Chief Electoral Officer has instead provided booth-wise deletion lists through multiple links, with the absence of old booth numbers making it difficult for voters to locate their names. Gender-wise data on deletions has also not been made public.

The draft roll has also left around 43.8 lakh electors subject to notices over discrepancies or because their records could not be mapped to the 2002 electoral roll. These voters will have an opportunity to submit claims and objections before the final electoral rolls are prepared.