The integrated draft electoral roll for Assam, published on December 30 after a Special Revision ahead of the Assembly elections, shows a 1.35% increase in registered voters.
The Guwahati city committee of Assam Congress organized a sit-in demonstration near the Secretariat complex.
“The irregularities in the voter list are intended to assist the BJP in regaining power in Assam. The ECI is acting in favor of the BJP. The vote thieves must resign from their positions. We denounce CM Himanta Biswa Sarma for attempting to secure power through vote manipulation,” stated Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) General Secretary Pradyut Bhuyan during a press briefing.
Despite police barricading the Manavendra Sharma Complex, which houses an office of the opposition party, protesters managed to breach the barricades and take to the road.
After chanting slogans and demonstrating for a while, they returned to the complex to conclude the protest.
In response to the protest, the CM remarked, “This is a draft roll and typically contains some errors. I don’t anticipate any mistakes in the final roll. The draft may show overlapping names or neighbors listed at the same address, but these issues are typically corrected in the final list.” The final electoral roll is set to be published on February 10.
“I see no controversy here. It’s a monumental task to enter the names of two crore individuals, and we shouldn’t question the intentions of the officials. Let’s allow them the opportunity to rectify any errors prior to the final list,” he added.
The draft roll indicates a total of 2,52,01,624 electors, representing a 1.35% increase from the last final roll published in January 2025.
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From January 6 to December 27 last year, there were 7,86,841 additions and 4,47,196 deletions in the rolls.
During the SR process, 4,78,992 deceased voters and 5,23,680 voters who moved were identified. Additionally, 53,619 multiple entries were detected.
The Election Commission stated that these names remain in the list and will only be addressed for removal or adjustment after formal applications are received during the current claims and objections period.
Claims and objections can be filed from December 27 to January 22, with special campaign periods scheduled for January 3-4 and January 10-11.
Assembly elections are anticipated to take place in March-April in Assam.
