Bela Estate Voter Deletions: EC Says Demolished Homes Led to 727 Names Being Put on ASDD List

New Delhi: The Election Commission has responded to the controversy over the deletion of voters from Bela Estate, a settlement along the Yamuna in Delhi, saying that the names were placed in the ASDD (Absent, Shifted, Dead or Duplicate) category after officials found that the dwelling units at their registered addresses had been demolished.

The issue came into focus after Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi alleged that only one of 728 residents in the area remained on the voter list following the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Gandhi visited Bela Estate on Monday and questioned the deletion of the names.

What the Election Commission said

According to the Election Commission's clarification, most of the electors in the affected polling part had their addresses recorded as “agriculture”, while house numbers were available only for a limited number of voters.

The poll panel said agricultural activity in the area, including what it described as illegal cultivation, was discontinued in 2021. Existing dwelling units were subsequently demolished during 2022-23, resulting in a substantial change in the physical and residential status of the area.

During the SIR exercise, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were required to visit the electors' registered addresses. Since the dwelling units no longer existed at those addresses, the Commission said the concerned electors could no longer be treated as “ordinary residents” at their previously recorded addresses.

The BLOs therefore placed the names in the ASDD category in accordance with the applicable SIR instructions, the Commission said.

Why were 727 names missing?

The controversy concerns a polling part in JJ Bela Estate, Vijay Ghat, where earlier electoral records reportedly contained hundreds of voters. The draft roll retained only one name, triggering questions over how such a large number of names could disappear from the list.

A report by Newslaundry earlier this month noted that the polling part had 729 registered voters before the SIR, while only one name appeared in the draft roll — representing a deletion rate of about 99.8%.

The Election Commission's explanation, however, is that the deletion was not based simply on whether people physically continued to live in the broader settlement. Instead, officials assessed the electors against their registered addresses during the verification process and found that the structures associated with those addresses had been demolished.

Rahul Gandhi's allegation

Gandhi said residents told him that they had continued living in the area even after their homes were demolished in 2023. He argued that the absence of a permanent house should not by itself determine whether someone has the right to vote.

In a post on X, Gandhi said the residents had lived in the area for decades and had voted in the 2024 Lok Sabha election and the 2025 Delhi Assembly election. He described the deletion of the names as “vote theft”, a characterization that reflects his political allegation rather than an established finding.

Can the affected voters get their names back?

Yes. The Election Commission has stressed that placement in the ASDD list does not permanently prevent an eligible person from being enrolled.

The Delhi Chief Electoral Officer's office said eligible people whose names are missing from the draft roll can submit Form 6 along with the required documents during the claims and objections process. The ECI has also extended the deadline for claims and objections in Delhi to October 30, 2026, according to the latest clarification reported by The Tribune and NDTV.

The Commission said its objective is to ensure that eligible citizens are included while ineligible entries are excluded. The final electoral roll is expected to be published after the completion of the claims and verification process.

Bela Estate row explained

The dispute therefore centres on two different aspects: the residents' continued physical presence in the settlement and the electoral records associated with their registered addresses.

While Gandhi and affected residents have questioned the removal of the names, the Election Commission has said the BLOs followed the SIR procedure after finding that the recorded dwelling units had been demolished. The ongoing claims process provides an avenue for eligible residents to seek re-enrolment.