TVRF survey alleges large scale deletion of votes

■ Wrongful deletions: 43 of 232 deleted voters surveyed in two Secunderabad Cantonment booths were allegedly wrongly removed.

■ Musheerabad findings: 42 of 95 deleted voters surveyed were found to be wrongful deletions.

■ Voter testimonies: Residents said they were deleted despite submitting enumeration forms and having voted in previous elections.

■ Key demands: Scrap SIR, seek the CEC's resignation and prepare fresh electoral rolls before municipal elections.

Metro India News | Hyderabad : A social audit and public hearings conducted by the Telangana Voter Rights Forum (TVRF) in Musheerabad and Secunderabad Cantonment have alleged large-scale wrongful deletions and procedural flaws in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, with affected voters questioning the fairness and transparency of the exercise.

Presenting its findings at a press conference on Tuesday, the forum said its volunteers had conducted door-to-door surveys, examined voter lists and interacted with hundreds of residents during October. The meeting also sought to counter the claims made by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on SIR at a rally in Hyderabad on Monday.

Dr A. Suneetha, presenting the findings, said that in Booths 150 and 151 of Secunderabad Cantonment, volunteers surveyed 757 voters, of whom 232 had been placed on the Absent, Shifted, Dead and Duplicate (ASDD) list. Of these, 43 were found to be wrongful deletions. Another 383 voters had received notices.

According to official figures, the two booths had 1,829 voters in the 2025 rolls, of whom 721 were deleted and 960 received notices. In Musheerabad, 42 of the 95 deleted voters surveyed by the forum were found to have been wrongfully removed.

Several affected voters narrated their experiences. Narender Gundelli of Musheerabad said four members of his family had been deleted despite submitting enumeration forms bearing the Booth Level Officer's signature. They were marked as absent or untraceable. Another voter, K. Ganesh of Trimulgherry, said he was asked to submit Form 6 as a first-time voter despite having voted several times.

Dr Parakala Prabhakar, who served on the public jury, criticised Amit Shah's claims about the deletion of 13 crore voters and challenged the government's assertion about three crore foreign infiltrators. He demanded constituency-wise evidence and called for the present SIR exercise to be scrapped.

Prof. G. Haragopal, Prof. Padmaja Shaw, Maria Tabassum, Sister Manjula and human rights lawyer S.Q. Masood also highlighted alleged procedural and legal shortcomings, warning that vulnerable communities could be disproportionately affected.

The forum demanded a complete rollback of SIR and repeal of the 2025 guidelines. It also sought the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner and repeal of the 2023 Chief Election Commission Act.

TVRF further urged the Telangana Chief Electoral Officer to address systemic flaws and ensure that the disputed electoral rolls were not used for the upcoming Hyderabad municipal elections. It called for fresh rolls based on the 2025 lists, subject to a public audit.