Supreme Court questions Election Commission over 33 lakh voter notices in Delhi

The Supreme Court of India has sought clarification from the Election Commission regarding the issuance of notices to over 33.13 lakh voters in Delhi during a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls.

A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant questioned the basis for identifying ‘logical discrepancies’ in voter records. The court noted that the high volume of notices appeared to have been issued in a mechanical or machine-generated manner. The legal challenge, filed by Anjali Bhardwaj and Amrita Johari, alleges that the Election Commission and the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi have failed to disclose the specific criteria, algorithms, and operational guidelines used to categorize voters under ‘logical discrepancy’ or ‘no mapping’ status.

The SIR process, which began in June 2026, resulted in a draft list containing approximately 97.5 lakh voters, a significant decrease from the 1.45 crore voters recorded in June. While approximately 47.56 lakh names were excluded under categories such as Absent, Shifted, Dead, or Duplicate (ASDD), the 33.13 lakh individuals receiving notices remain on the draft list but require additional verification. This group includes roughly 13.79 lakh voters with ‘no mapping’ to previous records and 19.33 lakh voters flagged for ‘logical discrepancies’ in details such as name, age, or family information.