Over 25 Lakh Voters Untraced During Kerala Electoral Roll Verification: CEO

Thiruvananthapuram: Over 25 lakh voters in Kerala remain untraced following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Chief Election Officer Rathan U Kelkar said on Monday, raising concerns about gaps in voter records.

Speaking at an all- party meeting convened to review the SIR progress, Kelkar said Booth Level Officers (BLOs) identified 6.44 lakh voters as deceased during the verification process. Another 8.19 lakh voters were found to have permanently moved elsewhere, while 1.31 lakh entries were duplicate records. Details were not available for around 7.12 lakh voters.

Kelkar noted that the untraced category also included voters to whom BLOs could not deliver enumeration forms. He assured that the details of these voters would be published on the official website for verification and shared with political parties.

Despite this, representatives from several parties expressed concerns over alleged discrepancies in the Election Commission’s data on untraced voters, signalling rising apprehension ahead of future elections.

The SIR process has been completed in Kasaragod, Kollam, and Wayanad districts and is expected to conclude in the remaining districts shortly. Originally launched last month, the revision was extended in the wake of local body elections.