EC’s second voter list drops 12 lakh names, doubts linger over pending cases before polls
Telegraph | 28 March 2026
The Election Commission on Friday night published the second supplementary list of around 12 lakh under-adjudication cases, which were disposed of.
The list published around 11.35pm has been divided into two categories. The first is of those who are approved for inclusion in the electoral rolls and the second has the names deleted from the draft rolls.
Although no official figure was given by the EC, sources said that around 40 per cent of names were deleted from the rolls.
With this, names of a total of 22 lakh voters were published in the first two supplementary lists. Although a total of 37 lakh cases were disposed of by the judicial officers to date, it is yet not clear why the remaining 15 lakh names have not been published in the second supplementary list.
With around 23 lakh cases still left to be cleared, questions remain whether adjudication of all voters with logical discrepancies will be completed before the last date of nominations for the Assembly polls.
A meeting of the Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court, Sujoy Paul, chief electoral officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal, the chief secretary, the home secretary and the DGP was held in the evening.
After the meeting, Agarwal had said 37 lakh under-adjudication cases had been disposed of by the judicial officers to date.
“Adjudication of nearly 37 lakh cases has been completed to date. But it is not sure how many of them would figure in the second list, as the number of names on the second list would depend on how many of the disposed of cases contain e-signatures of the judicial officers,” said a poll panel source.
The first supplementary list contained names of 10 lakh voters, even though the judicial officers had disposed of 29 lakh cases till Monday night when the list was published.“All 29 lakh cases that were disposed of could not be published in the first supplementary list as 19 lakh disposal orders did not carry e-signatures of the judicial officers.
Ideally, as a total of 37 lakh cases were disposed of by Friday evening, the second list should contain the remaining 27 lakh names. But it would depend on how many disposal orders contain e-signatures of the officers,” said a senior official of the poll panel.
Officials pointed out that the way the exercise was being carried out, it was not clear whether adjudication of the 60.06 lakh voters would be completed before April 6, the last date to file nominations for the first phase of the polls.
“Till now, adjudication of 37 lakh voters has been completed. If two lakh cases are disposed of every day, by April 6, all the 60.06 lakh cases could be disposed of. But the question remains whether all excluded voters could get enough time to appeal before the tribunals challenging the decisions,” said a bureaucrat.
Considering the situation, sources said, the CEO’s office has urged the high court to allow it to publish supplementary lists every day so that omitted voters get enough time to appeal before the tribunals.