Protests erupt in India over removal of 130 million voters from rolls — Dawn
In India, a review of electoral rolls during which around 130 million names were removed has sparked protests across the country. Opposition parties say the procedure unfairly benefited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Dawn reports.
Opposition groups, farmers’ organisations and the youth movement Cockroach Janta Party plan to hold a large-scale rally in Delhi on Saturday. Participants are demanding the resignation of India’s Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Police said they had not authorised the protest, while movement representatives reported the preventive detention of several of its leaders.
Reasons for the dispute
According to Election Commission data cited by the BJP, the rolls had 28 million deceased voters, 63 million people who had changed their place of residence, 10 million duplicate entries and 30 million people whom officials were unable to locate removed. The Commission stresses that its staff must record detailed grounds for each removal.
Opposition forces, including Congress, accuse Kumar of bias and say that Muslims and other minorities, whom they believe are less likely to support the Hindu nationalist BJP, were disproportionately affected. The Election Commission and the ruling party reject accusations of manipulation. The BJP says its electoral dominance is explained by Modi’s popularity and India’s economic growth.
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Challenging removal
The review of the rolls began last year ahead of elections in the state of Bihar, which is governed by a BJP-led coalition, and later expanded to most states in the country. In Bihar and West Bengal, a significant number of people found that their names had disappeared from the rolls and were unable to vote. The opposition says lengthy appeal procedures and what it considers arbitrary removals deprived millions of people of the opportunity to participate in voting.
People whose names are absent from draft rolls may apply for inclusion before the final register is published and appeal a refusal. After the final list is published, an excluded voter may also challenge the decision or register again. Amid criticism, the Election Commission announced procedural changes: officials will visit people at home to collect documents, and deadlines for the final review will be extended in some states.
At least seven Indian states will hold elections next year, including the most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP is in power. According to local media reports, 13% of names were removed from the state’s rolls after the review began in October 2025.
