‘EC Will Reduce India’s Population From 140 Crore to 50 Crore’: Arvind Kejriwal’s Big Swipe After 47 Lakh Delhi Voters Left Out

New Delhi: Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday took a sharp swipe at the Election Commission of India (ECI) after the publication of Delhi’s draft electoral roll under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which left more than 47 lakh electors out of the draft list.

The scale of the exclusions has quickly become a political flashpoint, with nearly one in every three registered Delhi voters not figuring in the newly published draft roll.

Reacting to the numbers, Kejriwal, the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), used a sarcastic population comparison to question the exercise.

“The Government of India is unnecessarily worried about the population. Through SIR, the Election Commission will reduce our country’s population from 140 crore to 50 crore,” Kejriwal said in a post on X, according to a translation of his Hindi remarks.

His statement was a political jibe over the scale of exclusions from electoral rolls and should not be interpreted as an actual reduction in India’s population.

How Many Delhi Voters Are Missing From the Draft Roll?

Before the revision exercise, Delhi had 1,45,10,299 registered electors. The newly published draft electoral roll contains 97,53,577 names, leaving 47,56,722 electors outside the draft list.

According to figures released by election authorities, 43,32,775 electors were found to have either shifted from their registered address or were unavailable during verification. Another 1,41,535 were identified as duplicate or multiple-location registrations, while 2,82,412 electors were recorded as deceased.

The SIR exercise involved house-to-house verification by Booth Level Officers (BLOs). Election authorities have categorised voters whose enumeration forms could not be collected under classifications including Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate and Others (ASDDO).

Delhi Sees Nearly 33% Exclusion at Draft Stage

The numbers mean roughly 32.8% of Delhi’s previously registered electorate does not appear in the draft roll, while enumeration forms for around 67.2% of electors were submitted and digitised.

ALSO READ : BJP begins 2027 poll battle under Nitin Nabin, first key meeting puts UP, Punjab in focus… what’s the strategy?

The unusually large number has drawn particular attention because Delhi, as the national capital, has a sizeable mobile population, with residents frequently shifting addresses within the city or moving in and out for employment, education and other reasons.

The publication of the draft list, however, does not necessarily mean that every excluded voter has permanently lost voting eligibility.

Name Missing? Voters Have Until September 30

Election authorities have provided a claims and objections window for eligible citizens whose names are missing.

Such voters can apply for inclusion through Form 6, along with the required declaration and supporting documents, until September 30, 2026.

Claims and objections will then undergo scrutiny and verification. According to the revised schedule, the process for deciding these cases is expected to continue until October 29.

The final electoral roll for Delhi is scheduled to be published on November 4, 2026.

The coming weeks will therefore be crucial for thousands of Delhi residents to check their electoral status and, where necessary, seek correction or restoration of their names before the final list is issued.

SIR Turns Into Political Flashpoint

The Special Intensive Revision has increasingly become a politically sensitive issue, particularly because of the large number of names excluded at the draft stage in several states.

Kejriwal’s latest attack is likely to add fresh momentum to the political debate surrounding the process, with opposition parties raising questions over voter exclusions while election authorities maintain that the revision is intended to update and improve the accuracy of electoral rolls.

For Delhi’s voters, however, the immediate priority is more practical: check the draft list before the September 30 deadline and file a claim if an eligible voter’s name is missing.