4.46 crore voters in Karnataka draft rolls; 1.07 crore names deleted

With the removal of over 1.07 crore names, Karnataka’s electorate shrunk to 4.46 crore voters when the draft electoral rolls were published on Monday as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). An overwhelming number of the missing names were marked ‘absent, shifted, duplicate, dead, and others’ (ASDDO). 

Announcing the figures at the end of the enumeration phase, Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) V. Anbu Kumar said the electorate comprised over 2.22 crore males, 2.24 crore females, and 2,871 others. Voters can check their names on the CEO’s official website at https://voters.eci.gov.in/download-eroll?stateCode=S10 

The CEO said a special campaign will be conducted in areas reporting high ASDDO numbers, where voters will be assisted in filling Form 6 (for inclusion). The dates for the campaign are yet to be announced by the CEO’s office. 

As many as 43.81 lakh notices will be served on voters whose enumeration forms contained logical discrepancies or those who could not be mapped. Notices may also be issued if a complaint is filed against a voter or if the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) has reason to suspect that a voter is ineligible.

With the enumeration phase ending, voters are likely to face the same problems they encountered with the ASDDO list. Just as people remained unaware that their names were in the ASDDO list until 12 days before the enumeration phase ended, they now have no way of knowing whether they will receive a notice until one is actually served. “We only have numbers on how many people will receive notices, and the names will not be known until the notice is generated,” the CEO said.

However, the entire process — from an ERO generating a notice to it being served — is to be completed within just seven days. This could become a major hurdle, especially for voters living in another district or city while remaining registered in their native constituency, as the voter must attend the hearing in person. 

There is, so far, no online option to check whether a person is likely to receive a notice. The CEO reiterated that names will be known only after a notice is generated. 

The process has now placed the burden of saving one’s vote squarely on the voter. Unlike the enumeration phase, when Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were instructed to hand over enumeration forms to voters and a family member above the age of 18 could fill them on the voter’s behalf, BLOs, during this stage, can serve notices on anyone available at the address. The notice will also carry a QR code to submit one of the 11 documents online, but the voter alone must appear for the hearing. 

This could pose challenges for sections of voters such as senior citizens, single mothers, women in general, labourers and persons with disabilities, among others. 

For instance, within Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) limits alone, 40,307 voters are above the age of 85, while 829 are above 100. More than 21,400 voters are persons with disabilities.

More polling stations

Following the enumeration phase, the number of polling stations across Karnataka increased after rationalisation. Each polling station will now have up to and not more than 1,200 voters, and where a polling station had more voters, they were shifted to another polling station within a two-kilometre radius, the CEO said. This has resulted in the addition of 1,873 polling stations across the State. 

Voters unable to find their names in their current polling station or booth list have been advised to search using their EPIC details, where the updated polling station will be reflected if rationalisation has taken place. They may also check two polling stations before and after their current one. 

Regarding notices on logical discrepancies and unmapped status, EROs have been vested with full powers to take a decision. If aggrieved by an ERO’s decision, a voter can appeal to the DEO/DC within 15 days. If the response remains unsatisfactory, the voter can appeal to the CEO, the final appellate authority, within 30 days of the first appeal. 

While the draft electoral rolls were published at 12 p.m. on Monday, people struggled throughout the day to view and download the rolls, particularly the English versions. While voters were able to access the website, after downloading the rolls, files repeatedly threw up errors such as “error” and “file corrupted.” 

Published – August 24, 2026 11:05 pm IST