Over 8.8 lakh Muslim voters removed from 64 Muslim-majority constituencies

The Karnataka Rajya Muslim Okkuta (KRMO) has sought clarification from the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding the removal of names from the voter list during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The organisation stated that the rate of removal of voters' names in constituencies represented by Muslim MLAs is significantly higher. Additionally, it has emerged that the share of the Muslim community among voters removed by classifying them as 'absent' or 'duplicate' is disproportionately high.

In a statement released by the religious organisation on Monday, it was stated that according to an analysis conducted by political research consultancy 'Sankalp' of the booth-level data released by the Election Commission, names of 27.59% of voters were removed in 10 assembly constituencies representing Muslim MLAs in Karnataka. This rate is significantly higher than the state average of 19.45%.

In these 10 constituencies, there were a total of 9,62,359 Muslim voters as per the 2025 voter list, out of which 2,46,759 or 25.64% names were removed during the revision. According to the organisation, more than 8.80 lakh Muslim voters have been removed from the list in 64 Muslim-majority constituencies.

Citing Sankalp's data, KRMO further stated that out of a total of 15,15,088 voters removed as 'absent' in Karnataka, 2,58,770 were Muslims. Similarly, out of 7,08,666 voters removed under the category 'already registered elsewhere', 1,43,940 were Muslims.

The organisation argued that in cases of death, verification can be done through official records, but the basis for classifying people as 'absent' or 'already registered elsewhere' rests on the assessment of the Booth Level Officer (BLO) and other field officers. KRMO has raised the question of whether sufficient verification was conducted before removing such names and noted that no public information is available regarding how many home visits were made to those declared absent.

The statement also mentioned 10 constituencies where the rate of name removal in Muslim MLA areas has been the highest. It was noted that 1,07,722 names were removed in Chamrajpet of Bengaluru, followed by 1,05,257 in Kalaburagi North, 99,367 in Narasimharaja of Mysuru, and 81,230 names in the Shivajinagar area of Bengaluru.

KRMO has not only demanded clarification but has also demanded the cancellation of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, the use of old voter lists for future elections, and a comprehensive judicial inquiry into the entire process. Additionally, a demand has been made to take legal action against the officers who appear responsible for the irregularities.

Karnataka Rajya Muslim Okkuta (KRMO) is an organisation working to protect the interests of the Muslim community in Karnataka.