AAP Questions Election Commission Over 1.67 Lakh Voter Deletions in Burari

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday criticised the Election Commission of India (ECI) following the publication of draft electoral rolls, which revealed that 1,67,885 voter names were deleted from the Burari assembly constituency in Delhi.

The reduction in Burari represents the highest absolute number of voter deletions among all 70 assembly constituencies in the capital following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

According to official figures, the electorate in Burari fell from 4,26,451 to 2,52,189 voters, marking a 39.4% decline. Burari MLA Sanjeev Jha stated that the deleted voters were categorised as having “shifted.” He explained that a large number of the affected voters were migrant workers and tenants who frequently change residences. Jha demanded that the poll authority provide clear guidance on how these individuals can re-register to vote.

Jha further alleged that the party had asked the poll body to share data on people marked as shifted to verify the authenticity of the records. He claimed the party had pointed out that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) had not adequately covered several areas, and had proposed meetings in localities where less than half of the revision work was complete.

AAP Delhi President Saurabh Bharadwaj raised similar concerns on social media platform X, stating that the party has repeatedly requested the commission in writing and in meetings to share voter details. Bharadwaj maintained that political parties need the names, phone numbers, and addresses of deleted voters to independently verify the rolls.

Besides Burari, substantial voter removals were recorded in other parts of the city. Okhla saw 1,63,829 deletions, Badarpur recorded 1,46,673, and Vikaspuri had 1,46,225 names removed. Tughlaqabad saw the highest proportion of voter deletions across Delhi at 47.8%.

When contacted for comment on the allegations, the Election Commission did not respond.