UIDAI Identifies 34 Lakh Deceased Aadhaar Cardholders in West Bengal's Electoral Roll Cleanup

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has revealed to the Election Commission that approximately 34 lakh Aadhaar cardholders in West Bengal have been identified as deceased since the introduction of the identity card in January 2009.

In a significant disclosure during a meeting with West Bengal's Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal, UIDAI officials also stated that around 13 lakh individuals in the state who never possessed Aadhaar cards have passed away.

This crucial information exchange took place during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, following an Election Commission directive instructing all state Chief Electoral Officers to collaborate with Aadhaar authorities for voter data verification and discrepancy identification.

A senior official from the Chief Electoral Officer's office explained on Wednesday, "The Election Commission has received multiple complaints about ghost voters, deceased voters, absentee voters, and duplicate entries in the electoral rolls. The UIDAI data regarding deceased citizens will be instrumental in detecting and eliminating such entries from the voter lists."

After the enumeration phase concludes and draft rolls are published on December 9, applicants found to have submitted forms with names already removed from the Aadhaar database may be called for verification by the concerned Electoral Registration Officer (ERO).

Election officials are also gathering relevant information from banking institutions, as most accounts are now linked to Aadhaar. "Banks have provided data on accounts where Know Your Customer (KYC) updates have remained incomplete for years, helping identify deceased individuals whose names still appear on voter rolls," the official noted.

Currently, the Special Intensive Revision process is underway throughout West Bengal with the objective of removing dead and fake voters from the rolls. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are conducting thorough door-to-door verification by distributing enumeration forms based on the 2025 electoral rolls and subsequently comparing the collected data with the 2002 electoral rolls, when the exercise was last conducted.

According to data from the Chief Electoral Officer's office, more than 6.98 crore (91.19 percent) Enumeration Forms had been distributed across the state as of Wednesday evening at 8 pm.

Officials have warned that the presence of ghost, deceased, or duplicate voters in the draft roll could result in disciplinary action against the responsible BLOs. Electoral Registration Officers have been directed to maintain the highest standards of accuracy and vigilance throughout the verification process.