ECI must restore ‘deleted’ Hindu voters’ names: CM Yogi says UP govt filed memorandum
Lucknow: Speaking at the private Hindi news channel in Ayodhya, the Chief Minister confirmed that the Uttar Pradesh government has formally submitted a memorandum to the Election Commission of India (ECI), demanding the immediate inclusion of all eligible citizens left out of the revised lists.
Setting off a major political controversy ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has claimed that nearly 1.27 crore Hindu voters are missing from the state’s draft electoral rolls following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Discrepancies in Revision Drive
Adityanath stated that an internal comparative review between existing state administrative databases and the draft electoral rolls revealed glaring discrepancies. According to him, a significant number of citizens who were actively registered in earlier databases—most notably local panchayat voter lists—failed to appear in the newly drafted assembly rolls.
The Chief Minister elaborated that the excluded individuals predominantly comprise:
-
Panchayat List Exclusions: Citizens registered in rural local-body lists whose names were omitted from the assembly rolls.
-
Welfare Beneficiaries: Eligible individuals currently receiving benefits under various state and central government welfare schemes.
-
First-Time Voters: Young eligible citizens in the 18–19 age group whose registrations were not reflected in the draft updates.
“While the removal of deceased or permanently migrated individuals is standard and legitimate, no eligible citizen should be disenfranchised due to procedural lapses or administrative negligence,” Adityanath said, urging the poll body to rectify errors before publishing the final electoral roll.
Rebuttal to Opposition Charges
The Chief Minister dismissed allegations by opposition parties questioning the integrity of the SIR drive, labeling their narrative as “politically motivated propaganda.” He countered that opposition groups routinely begin raising doubts over institutions and electoral machinery only after confronting electoral defeats or anticipating upcoming losses.
Opposition Questions Religious Classification
Adityanath’s remarks have escalated into an intense political flashpoint in the state. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and other opposition leaders pushed back against the claim, asking how the Chief Minister arrived at a specific religious classification of 1.27 crore voters, given that the Election Commission’s voter enumeration records do not register voters by religion. The opposition demanded transparency regarding the exact data and methodology used to arrive at the figure.
With political parties already mobilizing their ground cadres for the 2027 assembly race, booth-level scrutiny of the voter list revision is set to remain a focal issue across Uttar Pradesh.
