"Removal of 2.89 crore voters from UP SIR draft voter list a 'big conspiracy'": Congress leader Ajay Rai

Speaking in Lucknow to ANI, Rai said, "The removal of 2.89 crore voters (from UP SIR draft list) is a matter of inquiry. 1.13 crore forms, which were not returned. This is a big conspiracy, and a probe should be done."

Echoing similar concerns, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari in Prayagraj said nearly three crore voters being dropped from the list amounted to a "murder of democracy".

"The worry the Congress party had expressed has proved correct. Names of around three crore voters have been removed. This is a murder of democracy. No matter what the BJP does, it is certain that the BJP will be wiped out from UP," Tiwari said to ANI.

The issue also drew sharp reactions from the Samajwadi Party. SP leader Fakhrul Hasan Chaand said his party would remain vigilant to ensure that PDA (Picchda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) voters are not excluded from the electoral process.

"Samajwadi Party has been doing the work of protecting PDA votes, and we will continue to do so. Samajwadi Party is vigilant on this issue, and we will not let PDA vote be left out," Chaand said to ANI, while suggesting that linking Aadhaar cards with voter IDs could help ensure greater transparency.

Further intensifying the criticism, Uttar Pradesh SP chief Shyam Lal Pal questioned the role of the Election Commission, asserting that it must function impartially. "The Election Commission's role is to prepare an impartial voter list," he said to ANI.

Speaking in Mainpuri, Pal alleged irregularities during the recent elections in nine assembly constituencies in the state. "Recently, elections were held in nine assembly constituencies in Uttar Pradesh. In those elections, voters were prevented from reaching the polling booths in various ways, sometimes by the police, sometimes by officials, and at several booths, it was even observed that the presiding officers themselves were casting votes at the government's behest. This is the murder of democracy."

Meanwhile, following the completion of the enumeration phase of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Uttar Pradesh, the Office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) has said that Lucknow has the highest number of voters deleted, 30.04 per cent, in the draft Electoral roll.

According to UP CEO Navdeep Rinwa, on October 27, there were 39,94,535 electors in the city, while on January 5, the number was brought down to 27,94,397 voters.

Navdeep Rinwa on Tuesday announced the publication of the draft electoral roll following the completion of the Enumeration Phase of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state. A total of 2.89 crore names were deleted from the draft voter list.

Addressing the press, Navdeep Rinwa said, "The number of enumeration forms we received was approximately 12 crore, 55 lakh. This means that this many people returned the forms signed, indicating that their names should be included in the draft list. There were 46.23 lakh such deceased voters. There are 2.17 crore voters who have migrated, those who have shifted from their place of residence, who have left the house where they were residing when they registered their name in the voter list, and have permanently moved, or are missing or absent, or could not be found by the BLOs in the field. There were 25.47 lakh voters whose names were registered in more than one place on the voter list. In total, 2.89 crore names were not included in the draft voter list."

As per the SIR Order, the Draft Electoral Roll has been published on January 6, 2026. Printed and digital booth-wise copies have been provided to all recognised Political Parties and also made available on the CEO's website (ceouttarpradesh.nic.in).

The claims and objections period has been set for January 6, 2026, to February 6, 2026. Any existing or prospective elector may file claims or objections for inclusion of eligible electors or deletion of ineligible names.

A total of 403 EROs and 2042 AEROs are in position to scrutinise such cases by February 27, 2026. In addition to that, Additional AEROs have been notified as per the requirement to dispose off the claims and objections, within the prescribed time limit. (ANI)