5 days ago
Bela Estate Voters Challenge Mass Deletions From Delhi Rolls
Bela Estate is a small settlement beside the Yamuna in Delhi.
Residents say many of their names disappeared from the newest voter list.
They say 728 people were voters in the last election, but only one is now on the draft list.
They also say they still live there and voted in 2025.
Election officials say the missing names were marked absent, moved, duplicated or deceased.
Residents disagree and say they submitted hundreds of forms to prove their identity and residence.
Officials say people whose names are missing can apply again using Form 6.
Residents fear the deletions could make it easier to remove them from the settlement.
Rahul Gandhi has used the dispute to criticize the voter-list revision process.
Only one of Bela Estate’s 728 voters from the last election appears in Delhi’s draft electoral rolls.
Residents say they still live in the settlement, voted in 2025 and have appeared on earlier rolls.
The Election Commission classifies the missing names as absent, shifted, duplicate or deceased.
Residents say 550 verification forms were submitted and that their names appear in the 2002 and 2025 rolls.
The Delhi CEO’s office says omitted eligible voters can seek inclusion through Form 6 before October 30, 2026.
- Who
- Bela Estate residents, the Election Commission and Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer’s office are involved; Rahul Gandhi has also criticized the process.
- What
- Most names associated with Bela Estate are missing from Delhi’s draft electoral rolls, prompting residents to challenge the deletions.
- Where
- Bela Estate, a settlement on the banks of the Yamuna in Delhi.
- When
- The dispute concerns the current draft-roll process; the claims and objections period runs until October 30, 2026. Residents say they voted in 2025.
- Why
- Officials say names were classified as absent, shifted, duplicate or deceased, while residents say they remain there and fear disenfranchisement and possible displacement.
Residents’ Claims
Election Authorities’ Response
Why names are missing
Residents’ Claims
Residents say they continue to live in Bela Estate, have voted there for years and were included in earlier rolls, so the deletions are unjustified.
Election Authorities’ Response
The Election Commission says the missing electors were classified as absent, shifted, duplicate or deceased after verification.
Effect on political identity
Residents’ Claims
Residents fear the deletions could disenfranchise them, portray them as recent arrivals and contribute to efforts to evict or displace them.
Election Authorities’ Response
The Delhi CEO’s office says omission from the draft roll is not permanent exclusion and that eligible electors can seek inclusion through Form 6.
Political interpretation
Residents’ Claims
Rahul Gandhi describes the Special Intensive Revision as “vote theft” and argues that removing legitimate voters undermines elections.
Election Authorities’ Response
The Delhi CEO’s office says the matter has already been addressed by the concerned Electoral Registration Officer and points to the formal claims process.
Key facts
- Voters in previous roll
- 728 Bela Estate voters were registered for the last election.
- Voters in draft roll
- Only one of those voters appears in Delhi’s draft electoral rolls, according to the report.
- Resident-submitted forms
- Resident Kamal said 550 forms were submitted from the settlement.
- Election Commission classification
- Missing names were placed in the absent, shifted, dead or duplicate category after verification.
- Earlier electoral records
- Residents say their names appear in the 2002 and 2025 electoral rolls.
- Correction process
- Eligible electors whose names are missing can file Form 6 during the claims and objections period.
- Deadline
- The Delhi CEO’s office said the claims and objections period runs until October 30, 2026.
Quotes
An unnamed Bela Estate resident
A Bela Estate resident displaying property documents and objecting to the voter deletions.
“This is our land. They are trying to displace us. We have all the documents. Governments have come and gone, have promised us houses but left us here to rot. Deleting us from the voter list, however, is a first. It seems they want to erase us.”
NDTV
“They have already taken away our identity, our houses. What if this is a ploy to make sure they evict us again? They will say we moved here after 2026 as new voters and disenfranchise us despite voting in several elections, even in 2025.”
NDTV
Sources
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