The data indicates that most wards with the highest counts of duplicate voters were formerly represented by Opposition corporators.
The SEC announced on Wednesday (November 26) that the deadline for submitting objections has been extended from November 27 to December 3. The final voters’ list is scheduled for publication on December 10, as stated by the SEC.
According to the data, 4.33 lakh voters are listed multiple times in the draft voters’ list issued last week, with instances of duplication ranging from two to as many as 103 times. This brings the cumulative total of duplicate enrolments to 11,01,505.
The SEC has pointed to factors such as printing mistakes, voter relocations, and the inability to remove names of deceased individuals as reasons for the duplication. Booth-level workers will now undertake field visits, complete forms, and obtain verification commitments to ensure each voter is recorded just once, officials stated.
An SEC official noted that Mumbai’s civic elections, projected to be concluded by January 31, 2026, as directed by the Supreme Court, may experience a slight delay.
Depending on how swiftly the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) makes corrections, the elections could either occur by the end of January or the SEC might request an extension into the first week of February, he mentioned.
The SEC data further reveals that four out of the five wards with the most duplicate voters were formerly represented by Opposition corporators from parties like Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Nationalist Congress Party (SP). Two of these wards are part of the Worli assembly constituency, represented by Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray.
Opposition leaders have accused officials of irregularities during the ongoing revision of the voters’ list.
In a post on X, Aaditya Thackeray alleged that there were “millions” of duplicate names, fraudulent household entries, and voter cards missing essential details.
He cautioned that not extending the suggestion and objection period would cast doubts on the integrity of the electoral process.
Worli’s ward no. 199, once represented by former mayor and Sena (UBT) leader Kishori Pednekar, has the highest number of duplicate voters at 8,207. This is followed by Ghatkopar’s ward no. 131 with 7,741 duplicate entries, Parel-Lalbaug’s ward 203 with 7,624, Kalachowki’s ward 205 with 7,585, and Century Mill’s ward 194 with 7,584 duplicate voters, according to SEC data.
Civic officials, on the other hand, stated that a campaign to eliminate duplicate names is currently in progress.
A senior BMC official clarified that the 11 lakh figure refers to the total of repeated entries, not individual persons, and added that the municipal corporation is performing door-to-door checks to clean the rolls.
All 25 assistant municipal commissioners have been appointed as nodal officers for the rectification initiative, which will occur from November 27 to December 5. The final voters’ list is expected to be released after this period.
