Chennai has witnessed a staggering deletion of over 14.25 lakh voter names, constituting 35% of its electoral roll, during a special revision drive. Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner J. Kumaragurubaran attributed this massive drop primarily to heavy migration and shifts in residence within the city.
Scale of Deletion and Official Response
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR), which began last month, resulted in the draft rolls listing 40,04,694 voters. However, enumeration forms were received for only 25,79,676 individuals. A total of 14,25,018 names were removed. The breakdown of deletions reveals that 1,56,555 were marked deceased, a huge 12,22,164 were categorized as having shifted residence, 27,328 were absent, and 18,774 were double entries.
Commissioner Kumaragurubaran emphasized that many affected individuals might still reside in Chennai but in a different constituency. He urged such citizens to proactively use Form 6 to get re-enrolled, either through Booth Level Officers (BLOs) or online. "Voters must have self-awareness to find their votes are missing and must get themselves added," he stated.
Deadlines and Re-enrollment Process
The corporation has already received 11 lakh Form 6 applications and expects at least 10 lakh voters to be added back. The window for submitting Form 6 is open until January 18. For the 2.37 lakh voters not present in the 2005 rolls, they must submit additional proof of identity, such as Aadhaar, to their BLO before February 10. The final electoral roll will be published on February 17.
To facilitate the process, BLOs will be stationed at over 4,000 booths across the city to distribute and collect forms. The online process promises a voter ID card within two weeks of application.
Constituency-Wise Impact and Political Reactions
The voter deletion has impacted all assembly segments in the city significantly. Anna Nagar led with a 42% deletion rate (1.18 lakh removed), followed closely by Velachery, T Nagar, and Thousand Lights, each seeing around 40% of their voters removed. Even Chief Minister M.K. Stalin's Kolathur constituency saw a 35% reduction, while Deputy Chief Minister's Chepauk constituency witnessed 37% deletions.
The move has sparked reactions from political parties. AIADMK's former minister D. Jayakumar called for more booths to avoid confusion among families split across different polling stations. DMK's legal wing joint secretary K. Chandru questioned the rationale behind deleting 14 lakh voters, asking for an explanation on how 12 lakh people were deemed to have "shifted."
BJP state secretary 'Karate' R. Thiagarajan raised a procedural concern, pointing out that Form 6 is technically for new voters. He questioned how those deleted in the SIR, who already possess a voter ID, can declare they do not have one during the Form 6 process. The commissioner has noted this issue for clarification with the Election Commission of India.
Citizens can check their names in the draft rolls under the SIR 2026 section on the designated website, though users reported glitches on the evening of the release. With critical deadlines approaching, Chennai's electorate faces a crucial period to ensure their franchise is restored.
