Nearly 15 lakh new voters in Maha since Assembly polls
Mumbai: Maharashtra has added 14.71 lakh voters to its electoral rolls since the November 2024 assembly polls while names of 4.09 lakh voters were deleted but not a single political party has raised any objection in this regard, a senior official said on Thursday.
District-wise data showed Thane recorded the highest increase with 2.25 lakh new voters, followed by Pune with 1.82 lakh. This took the electorate in Thane to 74.55 lakh and in Pune to 90.32 lakh. Mumbai suburban district saw an addition of 95,630 new voters, taking its tally to 77.81 lakh, while Mumbai city added 18,741 names, raising its voter base to 25.62 lakh. The total electorate in the state now stands at 9.84 crore, he informed.
“While allegations of manipulation of the voter list have dominated political debates, there is not a single written complaint or objection that we have received so far regarding the addition of more than 14 lakh names after the assembly polls. The updated list will now be used for the upcoming civic and local body elections instead of the rolls prepared for last year’s assembly elections,” he said.
Together, the metropolis added 1.14 lakh new voters since November, pushing the total number for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections to 1.03 crore, the state government official added.
The official said applications for addition of 16.83 lakh voters were received across the state, along with nearly 1.97 lakh applications for shifting names from one constituency to another. After scrutiny, 14.71 lakh new names were approved and 4.09 lakh voters were deleted, the official informed.
Another senior official said political workers had already begun registration drives before the Election Commission formally allowed voter additions till June 30 this year. “It appeared suspicious at first, but local political workers were clearly aware that an updated list, and not the assembly rolls, would be used for local polls,” the officer said. The rise in the number of voters in the state comes against the backdrop of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s recent allegations that voter rolls were being manipulated to favour the BJP.
