Kerala Poll Row: No Claims Filed by Party BLAs Despite Voter Exclusion Allegations

Despite vocal accusations from political parties regarding massive voter exclusions during the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls ahead of the 2026 Kerala assembly elections, official records reveal that not a single formal application for claims or objections has been submitted by any of the Booth Level Agents appointed by these parties, even more than a week following the publication of the draft voter list.

The 60,061 Booth Level Agents, designated by the six national parties and six state-recognized parties operating in Kerala, are specifically empowered to gather Form 6 for new inclusions or claims and Form 7 for deletions or objections directly from the public, and to file these forms accompanied by the mandatory declarations, yet data from the Chief Electoral Officer's office confirms zero such submissions as of December 31.

Chief Electoral Officer Rathan U Kelkar clarified that informal or generic complaints raised by BLAs or party representatives, unaccompanied by the prescribed forms and required declarations, cannot be processed or officially recorded as valid claims or objections, emphasizing adherence to established procedural norms for maintaining the integrity of the electoral roll.

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In marked contrast to the inaction from party-appointed agents, individual citizens have demonstrated significant proactive engagement, independently submitting nearly 77,000 Form 6 applications for fresh voter enrolment and claims to the draft roll, supplemented by over 21,000 Form 6A filings from non-resident Kerala citizens abroad seeking similar inclusions.

Additionally, 375 citizen-initiated Form 7 applications were lodged seeking the removal of ineligible entries, while Electoral Registration Officers continue meticulous verification of approximately 3.72 lakh pre-draft Form 6 and 32,925 Form 6A applications, with eligible names set for incorporation into the final electoral roll scheduled for release on February 21 upon fulfillment of all requisite declarations.

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