Bhubaneswar: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Monday raised serious concerns over the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI), alleging large-scale deletion of voter names from electoral rolls during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Addressing a press conference here, senior BJD Vice President Debi Prasad Mishra said that while electoral rolls are revised annually in January, the scale of deletions in the current cycle is unusually high. He claimed that more than 10 lakh voters have been removed from the rolls in Odisha this year, compared to the usual average of around 7 lakh deletions, raising questions about the process.
Mishra cautioned that with the SIR exercise expected to be conducted in the state, there is growing apprehension that more names could be struck off the rolls. He noted that a similar revision was last carried out in Odisha in 2002 and recalled that a BJD delegation had met the ECI on August 19, 2025, urging that migrant workers’ names should not be removed from voter lists.
Senior party leader Prasanna Acharya alleged that across the country, more than 5 crore voters have reportedly been deleted from electoral rolls in about 12 states and Union Territories during similar exercises. He said concerns have intensified following a recent communication issued by the poll body.
Acharya pointed out that the removal of nearly 10 lakh voters in Odisha within a span of about one year and four months, despite their earlier inclusion in the rolls, raises questions about transparency and verification procedures. He urged both the government and the ECI to clarify the situation and ensure that no eligible voter is disenfranchised.
According to an April 18 letter issued by the Additional Chief Electoral Officer, Odisha, around 9.8 lakh voter names have been deleted since the elector mapping process began. Several complaints have also surfaced alleging wrongful deletions, including cases where voters were reportedly present at their residences and instances where Booth Level Officers did not conduct field verification before removing names.
The BJD demanded that the Election Commission address these concerns at the earliest and safeguard citizens’ voting rights.
