More women’s names axed than men’s, show EC SIR data
Times of India | 16 January 2026
Kolkata: Of the total names deleted from Bengal 2026 draft electoral rolls published by the EC for the ongoing SIR, over 53.6% are of women's. . Percentage of women electors' deletions was much higher than deletions of male electors, which is 46.5% of total deletions. The data also show a stark rural-urban divide.
Names of 58 lakh voters, whose names featured in the 2025 electoral rolls, were deleted from 2026 draft rolls.
According to an analysis by Sabar Institute, the exercise led to deletion of a high percentage (above 60%) of female voters from rural assembly seats. "Assembly seats where deletions of female voters were highest are Keshiary (65.6%), Suti (65.4%), Domkal (65.4%), Hariharpara (65.3%) and Mothabari (65.2%). On the other hand, urban assembly constituencies like Jorasanko (33.7%), Chowringhee (29%), Bhowanipore (36.7%), Kolkata Port (38%) and Shyampukur (39.6%) had the least number of female deletions," said Ashin Chakraborty of Sabar Institute, who, along with Souptik Halder and Sabir Ahamed, conducted the study.
Chakraborty said, "The Greater Kolkata area, the industrial belt of Asansol-Durgapur and urban centres like Hooghly, Kharagpur Sadar, Siliguri, and Dabgram-Phulbari show more male deletions, likely due to the presence of single male migrant workers. The rest of the state, however, has more female deletions. We are finding that ‘permanently shifted' was one of the biggest reasons for the deletion of a high number of female voters."
Political scientist and ex-Rabindra Bharati VC Sabyasachi Basu Ray Chaudhury said, "When women get married and move out to their in-laws' places, in most cases they either do not make necessary changes to the documents or forget them. Mostly in rural areas, women, after marriage, do not think to establish their own identity due to the patriarchal set-up of society." He added: "Generally, in our society women are neglected, especially in rural areas, because of the idea that they are supposed to stay at home and do not require so many documents."