NEW DELHI: Odisha Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) RS Gopalan has ordered all electoral registration officers (EROs) across the state to conduct proper verification before deleting the names of around 9.8 lakh voters from electoral rolls, officials familiar with the matter said.
The CEO has specifically asked them to suspend scrutiny of two people who have lodged complaints about unlawful removal from the electoral roll. He has also been directed to verify at least 50 per cent of the cases, an official said.
Senior officials at the CEO’s office said that “a large number of complaints were received, including cases where voters were found present at their addresses and cases where BLOs did not conduct site visits or proper verification before recommending deletion.”
Speaking on the matter, Gopalan said, “Booth level officers (BLOs) have identified around 9.8 lakh names across the state for deletion from the rolls due to deaths and change of residence. They have submitted their reports on absentee voters. However, BLOs have no right to delete names from electoral rolls. ERO officers will take decisions in this regard.”
“Emergency personnel have been specifically instructed to ensure that at least 50% of interceptions are physically verified and all prescribed procedures are followed before updating the lists,” he added.
“Normally, 7 to 9 lakh names are deleted from the rolls every year in Odisha due to deaths and change of residence. However, this time, around 9.8 lakh people have been put under scrutiny as the BLOs have already started the mapping process ahead of the Special Intensive Review (SIR) exercise,” the CEO said.
The total number of voters identified for deletion could reach the 10,000 mark once the entire mapping process is completed in three weeks, officials said.
In response, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) chief Bhakta Sharan Das demanded a re-verification of all the names reported, questioning the basis on which the deletion was recommended. “They need to re-verify because the names of many people who are not dead have been deleted. Many people cannot find work here, so they go out to work – how can you take away their rights?” “The names of those deleted are not from the BJP’s vote bank,” Das said, adding.
BJD Rajya Sabha MP Sasmit Batra has written to Chief Election Commissioner Ganesh Kumar, stating that the scale, pattern and process behind the proposed deletions raise “serious and fundamental concerns”. “Voters’ identification of potential deletion significantly exceeds normal annual deletion patterns, suggesting either systemic error or loose and perhaps flawed definitional criteria,” Batra claimed.
He urged the Commission to depute an Election Commission of India (ECI) team to Odisha, order a comprehensive verification exercise at the state level, and mandate public disclosure of deletion data at the constituency level.
The Odisha unit of the BJP did not respond to requests for comment on the matter.
A letter issued by Additional Chief Electoral Officer and Special Secretary Sushanta Kumar Mishra to election officials said, “I am directed to inform you that nearly 9.8 lakh deletions have been made by election organizations since the commencement of voter mapping exercise. However, a large number of complaints have been received regarding illegal deletion of names, including cases where voters were found present and cases where election officers did not conduct site visits and did not conduct proper verification before deletion.”
In March, Prime Minister Mohan Sharan Majhi had informed the council that nearly 7.68 lakh names had been deleted from June 2025 to March 22 this year.
An official said the CEO’s office has activated a toll-free helpline (1950) for voters to check whether their names are on the lists or not, raise complaints or seek help.
