11 Lakh Duplicate Voter Entries Found in Mumbai Draft Electoral Roll
Massive duplication scandal rocks BMC election preparations.
A staggering 10.64 per cent of Mumbai’s 1.03 crore voters — equivalent to over 11 lakh duplicate entries — have been detected in the draft electoral roll released last week by the Maharashtra State Election Commission, raising serious concerns about the integrity of the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections.
According to official data, 4.33 lakh individuals have their names repeated multiple times, with some voters appearing as many as 103 times, resulting in a total of 11,01,505 excess entries. The SEC has attributed the anomalies to printing errors, shifting residences, and failure to delete deceased voters, while announcing an extension of the objection period from November 27 to December 3, with the final list now scheduled for release on December 10.
Notably, four of the five worst-affected wards were previously controlled by Opposition corporators from Shiv Sena (UBT) and Nationalist Congress Party (SP), including two wards falling under the Worli Assembly constituency represented by Aaditya Thackeray. Ward 199 in Worli, once represented by former mayor Kishori Pednekar, tops the list with 8,207 duplicate entries, followed by wards in Ghatkopar, Parel-Lalbaug, Kalachowki, and Century Mill.
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Opposition leaders have accused the administration of deliberate manipulation. Aaditya Thackeray has alleged the presence of “millions” of repeated names and fraudulent entries, warning that any refusal to adequately extend the rectification window would cast doubt on the entire electoral process. The SEC’s decision to grant only a six-day extension has further fuelled these allegations.
With the Supreme Court mandating completion of BMC polls by January 31, 2026, a senior SEC official has admitted that the intensive cleansing drive — involving door-to-door verification by booth-level officers and 25 designated assistant municipal commissioners — may push the election schedule into early February, potentially requiring the Commission to seek additional time from the apex court.
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