The total percentage of deletions of voters from the draft rolls after the second round of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls being conducted by the Election Commission of India merits attention. An estimated 6.56 crore electors — about 13% of registered voters — have had their names deleted in nine states and three Union territories. The numbers, in some instances, are staggering. In Uttar Pradesh, helmed by the Bharatiya Janata Party, which has been a vocal endorser of the SIR, 2.89 crore names were axed, whittling down the number of voters to 12.55 crore from 15.44 crore. Gujarat, yet another fief of the BJP, has had over 70 lakh names deleted. The corresponding figure for Bengal has been over 58 lakh: this has prompted the ruling Trinamool Congress to question — mock — the BJP on whether UP and Gujarat have a higher share of illegal immigrants, a claim that the BJP has been making to tar the TMC’s image in Bengal. In fact, in UP, the BJP state leadership, nervous about the large-scale deletions, met recently to share its concern — the state goes to the polls next year. Similarly, in Bengal, the SIR has made the Matuas, most of whom had migrated from Bangladesh and form a key electoral plank of the BJP, anxious regarding the prospects of their exclusion from the final electoral rolls. There, of course, still exist mechanisms for voters to get their names enlisted in the final list after mandated scrutiny. But there can be no doubt about the fact that the BJP’s opponents, including the TMC in Bengal, would undoubtedly try to take advantage of the public anxiety pertaining to electoral exclusion.

The broader concern though transcends the SIR’s impact on the electoral math of the states. The central motive of the SIR, which takes place periodically, is to ensure the updation of electoral rolls and maintain their integrity such that they are free from the presence of foreigners. But these objectives should not be allowed to turn the exercise into an endeavour at exclusion. The EC has not done enough to dispel this concern; worse, its insensitivity has often led to considerable duress for countless citizens, especially the aged and the infirm. Whether this points to an erosion in the EC’s credibility or autonomy remains an element of feverish speculation.