Uttarakhand voter-deletion puzzle: Why 4 plains districts account for 85% of Form-7s

Uttarakhand voter-deletion puzzle: Why 4 plains districts account for 85% of Form-7s Udham Singh Nagar, Haridwar, Dehradun and Nainital account for over 85% of 1, 30, 382 Form-7 applications filed during SIR's claims-and-objections period.

Key points

• Udham Singh Nagar accounts for 43, 878 applications, followed by Haridwar with 29, 369, Dehradun with 19, 402 and Nainital with 18, 301.
• The Election Commission has now extended the claims-and-objections deadline from September 9 to September 28.
• An Election Commission official, nevertheless, cautioned against drawing conclusions concerning why Form-7 applications were concentrated in particular districts simply from the numbers.
• An Award-winning journalist covering the state of Uttarakhand, Vidheesha Kuntamalla has documented on education, policy and social justice.
• "Our biggest objection is the intention of the Election Commission, " Dhasama remarked, alleging the poll panel was acting in the interests of the BJP.

For context, the BJP's explanation is that these are Uttarakhand's most populous and mobile parts, with substantial movement of individuals throughout the state's borders. (File Photo).

Over 85% of the Form-7 applications seeking deletion of names from Uttarakhand's electoral rolls have come from just four districts – Udham Singh Nagar, Haridwar, Dehradun and Nainital – putting the spotlight on why voter-deletion requests are so heavily concentrated in the state's plains.

In practice, the Indian Express documented on Tuesday that these four districts together account for more than 85% of the 1, 30, 382 Form-7 applications filed during the claims-and-objections period of the SIR. Udham Singh Nagar accounts for 43, 878 applications, followed by Haridwar with 29, 369, Dehradun with 19, 402 and Nainital with 18, 301. The concentration is striking not only since of its scale, but due to the sharp contrast with the state's hill districts. By comparison, Pauri Garhwal received 5, 424, Pithoragarh 3, 044, Almora 2, 999, Chamoli 1, 702, Champawat 1, 723 and Tehri Garhwal 1, 431. While Bageshwar and Rudraprayag recorded just 618 and 382 respectively, uttarkashi received 2, 109.

He rejected the suggestion that the concentration was connected to the state's minority population. "It is not that any minority is being targeted, " he remarked.

For context, the Congress, nevertheless, disagrees. Suryakant Dhasama, senior vice-president of Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee, remarked the party was not resisted to the SIR, but questioned the manner in which the deletion process was being carried out. "Our biggest objection is the intention of the Election Commission, " Dhasama remarked, alleging the poll panel was acting in the interests of the BJP. "These four districts are happening in most of the seats where Muslims, minorities, poor individuals, SC, ST are there. They are targeting them since they are the vote base of the Congress Party."

For context, an Election Commission official, nevertheless, cautioned against drawing conclusions concerning why Form-7 applications were concentrated in particular districts simply from the numbers. "This is the fact. The forms are received. There can't be an opinion regarding this, " the official stated, adding that the data reflected only the applications received during the claims-and-objections period. In practice, the numbers could vary significantly from one district to another depending on how actively individuals examined the electoral rolls.

For context, the concentration of Form-7 applications has additionally translated into a substantial administrative burden. Of the 1, 30, 382 Form-7 applications received between July 14 and August 13, only 44, 132 had been disposed of as of September 7, leaving 86, 250 under process. Udham Singh Nagar has 34, 903 applications under process, followed by Haridwar (17, 554), Nainital (11, 498) and Dehradun (11, 262).

In practice, the Election Commission has now extended the claims-and-objections deadline from September 9 to September 28. The final electoral roll will be published on October 3. © The Indian Express Pvt Ltd.

Meanwhile, an Award-winning journalist covering the state of Uttarakhand, Vidheesha Kuntamalla has documented on education, policy and social justice. She has broken news and written investigative stories on education, some of which have prompted responses from central universities and administration authorities. She uses the Right to Information Act as a reporting tool and enjoys telling people-driven stories through long-form journalism. Vidheesha joined The Indian Express's Delhi City team in 2023, where she has been part of the education coverage in the newsroom, reporting on policy, institutions, and problems affecting students and communities. Her journalism career began in 2020 as a freelance journalist after she left a career in civil engineering. She covered her home states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, focusing on gender, social justice, and politics. Vidheesha Kuntamalla Qualification, Degrees: Master of Science in Quantity Surveying from Kingston University, London Awards and Recognition: Vidheesha won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2024 for her long-form story on India's first case of passive euthanasia.

For now, uttarakhand voter-deletion puzzle: Why 4 plains districts account for 85% of Form remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.