Arvind Kejriwal, convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and former Chief Minister of Delhi, criticized the Centre and Election Commission over large-scale voter deletions.
The dispute centers on the integrity of the democratic process in the capital. Allegations of political bias in voter registration can influence election outcomes and disenfranchise millions of citizens.
The controversy follows the release of a draft electoral roll for Delhi. According to reports, approximately 47.7 lakh names [1] were omitted from the city's total of 1.45 crore [1] registered voters. The draft roll was published in September 2024.
Kejriwal said the deletions are unjustified. He said the move reflects political bias by the central government and the Election Commission. The AAP leader demanded corrective action to restore the missing names to the rolls.
To address these omissions, the government set a deadline of 30 September 2024 [3] for citizens to file objections. Individuals seeking to rectify their status were instructed to use Form 6 to lodge their claims.
AAP leaders have since raised these concerns with the Chief Electoral Officer. They said the scale of the exclusions is too significant to be a routine administrative error, suggesting instead a targeted effort to alter the voter base.
“47.7 lakh names were omitted from the city's total of 1.45 crore registered voters.”
The removal of nearly one-third of Delhi's registered voters from a draft roll creates a significant administrative and political crisis. If these deletions are not corrected, it could lead to widespread voter suppression during the next election cycle. The tension highlights the ongoing friction between the AAP-led regional interests and the central government's oversight of electoral machinery.
