India News : Ahead of the Assam Assembly elections, the Election Commission of India has released the final electoral roll, showing a net deletion of 2,43,485 voters compared with the draft list—an overall 0.97% decline. The revision has sparked political debate as voter numbers rose in several Muslim-majority districts, while tribal and Upper Assam regions saw declines.
Key Numbers from the Final Roll
- Total voters: 24,958,139
- Men: 12,482,213
- Women: 12,475,583
- Third gender: 343
District-wise Trends
- Of Assam’s 35 districts, 24 recorded a fall in voters, while 10 saw an increase (ranging from a few hundred to over 30,000).
Districts with increases:
Barpeta, Dhubri, Goalpara, Morigaon, Nagaon, South Salmara, Bongaigaon, Hailakandi (largely Muslim-majority);
plus Majuli (+209) and Bajali (+1,300), which are not Muslim-majority.
Districts with declines:
Upper Assam showed notable drops—Sonitpur (–22,186), Lakhimpur (–20,998), Golaghat (–20,027), Jorhat (–11,940).
By percentage, Darrang (–2.68%) and Udalguri (–2.76%) recorded the steepest falls.
Jalukbari Constituency
In Jalukbari, represented by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, over 4,300 names were deleted. The final roll lists 2,06,314 voters, down from 2,10,624 in the draft.
Government’s Position
Chief Minister Sarma said the deletions followed complaints submitted during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and targeted “suspect entries.” He claimed this was the largest such exercise since the 1985 Assam Accord, adding that action against illegal immigration would continue.
Note: Authorities have not released data identifying the religious composition of names added or removed.
Bottom line:
The revised voter list—marked by selective increases and widespread deletions—has set the stage for a high-stakes political debate over demographics and electoral integrity in Assam ahead of the polls.
