Nearly half of Bengaluru's 1.03 crore voters may be dropped from draft electoral roll

Nearly half of Bengaluru's registered voters have been marked for exclusion from the draft electoral roll as part of Karnataka's ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, raising the prospect of large-scale corrections before the final list is published.Data released by Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) V Anbukumar, on August 5 shows that 49.42 lakh of Bengaluru's 1.03 crore registered voters have been classified under the Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate or Other (ASDDO) category during the enumeration phase. Statewide, 1.11 crore voters, around one-fifth of Karnataka's 5.54 crore electors, have been similarly flagged. The draft electoral roll is scheduled to be published on August 17.The highest proportion of flagged voters is in Bommanahalli, where 57.08% of the electorate mapped during the revision, or about 2.76 lakh voters, has been placed under the ASDDO category. Bommanahalli is one of 10 Assembly constituencies in Bengaluru where more than half the mapped electorate has been marked for exclusion. Other constituencies with deletion rates above 50% include Vijayanagar (53.66%), Dasarahalli (53.55%), BTM Layout (53.43%), and C V Raman Nagar (53.25%).Bangalore South and Mahadevapura account for the largest number of voters flagged. Bangalore South has 3.84 lakh electors, or 48.99% of those mapped, in the ASDDO category, while Mahadevapura has 3.13 lakh voters (45.66%). Yelahanka, which recorded the lowest proportion among Bengaluru's 28 Assembly constituencies, has 1.81 lakh voters, or 38.01% of its mapped electorate, marked under the category.BBMP South recorded the highest proportion of ASDDO entries, with 11.07 lakh voters (51.65%) flagged during the exercise. The Bangalore Urban electoral district has the largest absolute number, with 18.13 lakh voters (45.03%) across its seven Assembly constituencies classified as ASDDO. BBMP North has 11.07 lakh voters (47.46%) flagged, while BBMP Central has 9.15 lakh voters (48.42%).Addressing reporters, CEO V Anbukumar said the ASDDO lists had been shared with all seven recognised political parties in Karnataka. He said anyone who had been incorrectly classified could have the entry corrected by August 8, adding that every ASDDO entry is supported by a spot mahazar signed by at least one booth-level agent from a recognised political party.Online portal launched for voters to check ASDDO statusThe Election Commission has also launched an online portal allowing voters to check whether they have been placed under the ASDDO category. The district-wise list can be accessed at https://ceo.karnataka.gov.in/asddo.html.Voters who find they have been wrongly marked as absent, shifted or under any other ASDDO category can approach their Booth Level Officer (BLO), establish that they continue to reside at their registered address, and obtain an enumeration form to correct their details.Apart from those marked under ASDDO, the Election Commission has identified 34.17 lakh voters under the "No Mapping" category, where an elector's name or parent's name could not be matched during the enumeration. These voters will receive individual notices. Meanwhile, 1.76 crore electors have been categorised as "Mapped as Self" and 2.31 crore as "Mapped as Progeny." Together, these 4.07 crore verified electors will form the basis of the draft electoral roll.Once the draft roll is published on August 17, voters will have until October 15 to seek corrections or inclusion by submitting any of the 11 approved identity documents, including Aadhaar, passport, PAN card, driving licence, MGNREGA job card and other government-issued identity documents. The Election Commission has said eligible voters who have been wrongly categorised during the enumeration exercise will be able to rectify their entries during this verification period.