Nearly 500,000 new voters were added to the electoral rolls in West Bengal between the publication of the final list on February 28 and the closing of nominations, according to senior officials at the Election Commission of India (ECI).
The additions came from approximately 709,000 Form 6 applications, submitted across both nominations stages. After verification, approximately 500,000 applicants were found eligible and included on the lists, reflecting the Commission’s renewed registration process that allows registration until the close of nominations.
When the final electoral list was published on February 28, 188,207 new voters were included through this form. Over the next month, as the nomination process progressed, another 500,000 names were included.
District-level data shows that North 24 Parganas recorded the highest addition with over 71,000 new voters, followed by Kolkata with around 44,000 voters. Howrah, Hooghly and East Midnapore were also among the top districts.
The total number of voters in the state now stands at 68.2 million, including more than 34.9 million male voters, more than 33.3 million women, and 1,257 third-gender voters. Officials said the number may rise further as pending cases are decided by appeals courts.
The new registrations sparked a political dispute in the state, which is heading to the polls.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers submitted fraudulent Form 6 applications to register “outsiders”, calling it “voter kidnapping”. Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Abhishek Banerjee claimed that mass applications were being made across constituencies to influence voter lists.
The Bharatiya Janata Party rejected these accusations and accused the TMC of trying to distort the electoral process. Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly Suvendu Adhikari alleged widespread irregularities in the voter lists, while BJP leader Amit Malviya questioned the TMC’s allegations of infiltration.
Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Manoj Kumar Agarwal, said complaints were being examined and warned of legal action against false applications. He clarified that Form 6 can only be submitted by the applicant and not on behalf of someone else.
West Bengal will vote in two phases on April 23 and 29, with scope for more additions to the lists as outstanding issues are resolved ahead of the polls.
