SIR 2.0: EC Deletes Over 97 Lakh Voters In Gujarat

In a significant recalibration of Gujarat's political landscape, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has unveiled a draft electoral roll that reveals a staggering 14.5% contraction in the state's registered voter base.

According to the data released on Friday, December 19, 2025, the total number of eligible electors plummeted from 5.08 crore to approximately 4.35 crore, effectively striking nearly 73.73 lakh names off the official records.

The Mechanics of the "Clean-Up"

This massive reduction is the culmination of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), a rigorous door-to-door verification campaign designed to "purify" the state's voter data. Hareet Shukla, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Gujarat, explained that the deletion was necessary to maintain the integrity of the democratic process.

The breakdown of these 73.73 lakh deletions provides a clear picture of why the numbers shifted so drastically:

Permanent Migration: The largest group, accounting for 40.33 lakh deletions, consisted of individuals who had moved out of their registered districts or the state entirely.

Deceased Voters: Approximately 18.05 lakh names were removed after being confirmed as deceased.

Absenteeism: Around 9.8 lakh voters could not be located at their registered addresses during multiple visits.

Duplicate Entries: Technical scrubbing identified 3.79 lakh voters who held redundant or duplicate voter ID cards.

Miscellaneous: The remaining 1.95 lakh were removed for various administrative or eligibility reasons.

The Urban-Rural Divide

The data highlights a sharp contrast between Gujarat's bustling metropolitan hubs and its rural or tribal hinterlands. Urban centers, characterized by high population mobility, bore the brunt of the deletions.

Surat, the state's diamond and textile hub, saw the most dramatic decline at 25.66%. It was followed closely by the financial capital, Ahmedabad, which recorded a 23.21% drop. Other major urban centers like Vadodara (18.74%), Bharuch, and Valsad also saw double-digit percentage decreases. CEO Shukla noted that the fluidity of urban life-where residents frequently move for work or housing-is a primary driver for these "permanently shifted" statuses.

Conversely, the voter base in tribal and rural regions remained remarkably stable. The Dang district registered the lowest deletion rate at just 5.5%, followed by Narmada (7.3%) and Tapi (7.9%). These areas typically see far less internal migration, resulting in more consistent voter registries.

Gender and Demographic Disparities

One of the most striking revelations in the draft roll is the disproportionate impact on female and third-gender voters.

Female Voters: The number of registered women dropped by 15.28% (from 2.48 crore to 2.10 crore).

Male Voters: In comparison, the male voter count fell by 13.76% (from 2.60 crore to 2.25 crore).

Third Gender: This demographic saw a massive 36% reduction, with the count falling from 1,668 to 1,063.

Next Steps for Citizens

The ECI has emphasized that this is a draft roll, not the final list. A window for "claims and objections" is now open, allowing citizens whose names were erroneously removed to seek reinstatement.

Deadline: Objections must be filed by January 18, 2026.

Verification: Officials will resolve all claims by February 10, 2026, before the final list is published.