Assam final voter list: 24 districts see dip; Muslim-majority belts record rise

Guwahati, Feb 12: Most Muslim-majority districts of Assam registered an increase in the number of electors in the final voters’ list published after the Special Revision (SR), while a majority of other districts, including those with higher tribal populations, recorded a decline compared to the draft roll.

District-wise data available on the website of the State Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) show that of the 35 districts in Assam, 24 witnessed a dip in the final voter count, while 11 recorded an increase. The variation ranged from a few hundred names to more than 30,000.

The Election Commission, on Tuesday, had published the final electoral roll for poll-bound Assam, with over 2.43 lakh names deleted from the draft list.

Following the completion of the claims and objections process under the SR, the final roll stands at 2.49 crore voters - a decrease of 0.97% from the draft roll.

State Chief Electoral Officer Anurag Goel said the deletions were part of the standard revision process. “Wherever SIR is happening, names get deleted. Here also, we worked diligently during SR to ensure a clean voter list,” he said.

Western Assam gains; Barak Valley split

In western or Lower Assam, several Muslim-majority districts registered a rise in electors. Dhubri, South Salmara, Goalpara and Barpeta all saw increases in the final roll. The rise ranged from around 200 voters in South Salmara to more than 25,000 in Barpeta.

In central Assam, the trend was mixed. Darrang and Hojai recorded a decline in voter numbers, while Morigaon and Nagaon saw an increase compared to the draft roll.

Of the three districts in the Barak Valley, a Bengali-speaking region with sizeable Hindu and Muslim populations, Cachar and Sribhumi recorded a dip in voter numbers. Hailakandi, however, registered an increase in the final roll.

Tribal belts & Upper Assam record decline

All three hill districts, Dima Hasao, Karbi Anglong and West Karbi Anglong, which fall under the Sixth Schedule, reported a decrease in electors in the final list.

Similarly, the five districts under the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), also governed under the Sixth Schedule with a majority tribal population, witnessed a decline in electoral strength.

Both Kamrup and Kamrup (Metropolitan), which includes Guwahati, the state’s largest city, recorded a reduction in voter numbers.

In eastern or upper Assam and the adjoining northern bank districts of the Brahmaputra, 10 of the 11 districts saw a drop in electors after the revision exercise. Majuli was the only exception, registering an increase of around 100 voters.

Overall, the data indicate a broad decline in most districts following the Special Revision, with notable increases concentrated in several Muslim-majority districts of western and parts of central Assam.

PTI