Tamil Nadu Draft Voter List Sees Over 97 Lakh Names Deleted In Special Intensive Revision

Over 97 lakh voters have been removed from Tamil Nadu’s draft electoral roll following the Special Intensive Revision, mainly due to migration, deaths, and duplicate entries. The claims and objections period is open until 18 January 2026, allowing eligible voters to be restored to the revised list.

Tamil Nadu’s draft electoral roll, released on Friday following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), has seen over 97 lakh voters removed for reasons including migration, death, and duplication.

According to the state’s Chief Electoral Officer, 66.4 lakh entries were deleted due to migration, 26.9 lakh because the voters were deceased, and 3.98 lakh for multiple enrolments. The office also reported that 5.43 crore voters submitted enumeration forms, accounting for 84.81 per cent of the state’s total electorate.

“As on 19 December 2025, out of 6,41,14,587 electors, 5,43,76,755 electors have submitted their enumeration forms, reflecting overwhelming participation in the first phase of SIR,” the office stated.

Gujarat’s draft voter list, also released on Friday, recorded some 73.7 lakh deletions. Of these, 18.07 lakh were deceased, 51.86 lakh had shifted or were absent, and 3.81 lakh were registered at multiple locations.

The claims and objections period for both states is open until 18 January 2026, allowing genuine voters to be added back to the revised lists. “Genuine electors can still be added back in electoral rolls during the Claims and Objections period from 19 December 2025 to 18 January 2026,” officials said.

The Tamil Nadu SIR follows the Election Commission of India’s release of draft rolls in West Bengal, Rajasthan, Goa, Puducherry, and Lakshadweep earlier this week.

Some of the largest deletions occurred in major districts. Chennai saw 14.25 lakh names removed, including 1.56 lakh deceased voters and over 12 lakh who had shifted residences, leaving 26 lakh valid voters across 22 Assembly segments. Coimbatore had 6.5 lakh deletions, Dindigul 2.34 lakh, and Kancheepuram 2.74 lakh. Karur saw nearly 80,000 names removed.

Political reactions have been divided. The DMK-Congress coalition and newcomer TVK opposed the SIR, while the AIADMK, allied with the BJP, supported it. AIADMK leader E. Palaniswami said the deletion of “duplicate voters” validated the need for a revision and predicted “drama” from the DMK over the issue.

The opposition has previously argued that the SIR is a tool for electoral manipulation, an allegation rejected by both the Election Commission and the BJP, who cited constitutional powers for periodic voter list revisions.

Meanwhile, West Bengal’s first SIR draft list, released earlier this week, saw 58 lakh names deleted.