UP SIR: Voter deletions exceed victory margins in constituencies of 40 ministers

Lucknow: The final list of the Special Intensive Revision released by the Election Commission of India in Uttar Pradesh on Friday has raised concern within the state government and the Bharatiya Janata Party, with data showing that in constituencies represented by 40 ministers, the number of deleted voters exceeds their victory margins from the 2022 Assembly elections.

The trend spans both urban and rural seats, pointing to a significant shift in electoral rolls across regions. In Lucknow Cantonment, represented by Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, around 1.25 lakh names have been removed, far higher than his winning margin of about 39,000 votes. In Shahjahanpur, Finance minister Suresh Khanna saw nearly 1 lakh deletions against a victory margin of just 9,313 votes.

The Uttar Pradesh council of ministers has 53 members, including 20 Cabinet ministers, 14 ministers of state with independent charge, and 19 ministers of state. Of these, 40 are MLAs and 13 are members of the Legislative Council.

Among the ministers, IT Minister Sunil Sharma recorded the highest deletions, with 3.16 lakh voters removed from Sahibabad, exceeding his 2022 victory margin of around 2.15 lakh votes.

In Purkazi, Cabinet minister Anil Kumar had won by 6,532 votes, while 31,808 names have now been deleted. In Bhognipur, MSME minister Rakesh Sachan secured victory by 11,893 votes, but 40,086 names were removed from the rolls.

There are a few exceptions. Panchayati Raj minister Omprakash Rajbhar, who heads the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, won Zahoorabad by 45,632 votes, with 39,447 deletions recorded.