CHENNAI: Five of the 16 Assembly constituencies in Chennai recorded over a 40% drop in voter names in the draft electoral rolls released on Friday, with the city as a whole witnessing a decline of 35.6%—more than one-third of the electors listed in the existing rolls.
The Anna Nagar Assembly constituency saw the highest number of deletions, with 42.2% fewer names in the draft roll compared to the figures before the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
Apart from Anna Nagar, Villivakkam (40.7%), Thousand Lights (40.7%), T. Nagar (40.8%), and Velachery also recorded over 40% deletions under categories such as “absent,” “shifted,” and “dead.”
Virugambakkam, Harbour, and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin’s Chepauk–Thiruvallikeni constituencies also saw significant deletions of 38.8%, 38.7%, and 37.2% respectively.
Across Chennai, the number of voters has dropped from 40,04,694 before the SIR to 25,79,676 in the draft rolls, marking a 35.6% decline. Of the deletions, 1,56,555 were due to deaths, 27,328 voters were untraceable or absent, and 12,22,164 were marked as permanently shifted.
In the Shozhinganallur constituency under Chengalpattu district, a 31.09% decline was recorded, with voter numbers falling from 7,02,450 to 4,84,011.
Speaking to reporters, District Election Officer J. Kumaragurubaran said that around 8–10 lakh voters are expected to be added to the rolls at the end of the exercise through Form 6 applications for inclusion of names in the electoral roll.