UP Draft Electoral Roll Out: Uttar Pradesh has witnessed one of the largest electoral roll clean-up exercises in India’s history after the Election Commission of India released the draft voter list following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The new draft shows 12.55 crore registered voters in the state, a sharp fall from 15.44 crore recorded in October 2025. This means 2.89 crore names have been removed, making Uttar Pradesh the state with the highest number of deletions in the country so far.
The SIR exercise in Uttar Pradesh began on November 4 and concluded on December 26 after two extensions. It was carried out under the theme “Shuddh Nirvachak Namavali, Majboot Loktantra”, aiming to create a cleaner and more reliable voter database. During this period, all registered voters were required to submit enumeration forms, and certain categories had to provide additional documents to prove their eligibility.
According to officials in Lucknow, the removals were not random. Out of the 2.89 crore deleted names, 46.23 lakh belonged to deceased voters. The largest chunk, 2.17 crore voters, were those who had shifted from their registered addresses to other locations. Another 25.46 lakh names were found to be duplicated or listed in multiple places, leading to their deletion from the rolls.
With these figures, Uttar Pradesh has moved ahead of all other states in terms of voter list pruning. Earlier, Tamil Nadu had led the list with around 97 lakh deletions. Gujarat removed 73.73 lakh voters, West Bengal 58 lakh, and Rajasthan 44 lakh. The scale of UP’s revision is far greater than any other state, highlighting the intensity of the SIR exercise there.
The draft roll was originally scheduled to be released on December 31 but was delayed by the Election Commission amid heightened scrutiny of the large-scale deletions. The final electoral roll for Uttar Pradesh will now be published on March 6, after the completion of the verification process.
In the meantime, voters will get a chance to review the draft list. Claims and objections can be filed from January 6 to February 6. The Election Commission will examine all submissions and dispose of them by February 27. Any eligible voter whose name is missing can apply for inclusion, while incorrect or duplicate entries can also be challenged during this period.
The massive clean-up has sparked debate across political and civil society circles. Supporters argue that removing deceased, shifted, and duplicate voters will strengthen the credibility of elections and prevent misuse. Critics, however, worry that genuine voters could be left out due to documentation gaps or administrative errors.
Given Uttar Pradesh’s importance in national politics, the accuracy of its voter list is crucial. With elections on the horizon, the coming weeks will be closely watched as voters check their names and the Election Commission works to ensure that no eligible citizen is denied the right to vote.
Uttar Pradesh’s draft voter list now stands at 12.55 crore voters after 2.89 crore names were removed under the SIR exercise. The deletions mainly include deceased voters, people who have shifted residence, and duplicate entries. UP has recorded the highest number of deletions among all states. Voters can file claims and objections from January 6 to February 6, and the final electoral roll will be released on March 6.