Guwahati: Serious irregularities have come to light in Assam’s electoral rolls during the ongoing special revision (SR), raising concerns over alleged voter list fraud. Several house owners in Guwahati have found names of unknown persons added to their voter lists without their knowledge or consent.
The issue has been reported from Mahammad Tayabullah Path near Dighalipukhuri in the heart of the city. According to residents, names of people they have never known or accommodated have appeared in the voter list published by the Election Commission of India (ECI) after the special revision. Many of these names carry surnames commonly associated with Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
The discrepancies were first noticed after the draft voter list was published. House owners said they had no idea who these individuals were, when they allegedly came to Assam, or how their names were linked to their residential addresses. The problem has been found in the voter list of the polling booth located on the right side of Rabindra Bhavan in Guwahati, where multiple houses show similar irregularities.
One such case is that of Abdul Munin Choudhury, the owner of houses numbered 44 and 45 on Mahammad Tayabullah Path. He said that when he downloaded the draft voter list on the night of December 27, he was shocked to see names of several unknown persons listed along with genuine voters from his family.
According to the list, names such as Tinku Prasad (45), Rinku Prasad (41), Neha Shah (26), Anjana Bakra (77), and Phool Deri (57) were added to his address. Choudhury said none of these individuals have ever lived in his house.
He added that a Booth Level Officer (BLO) had visited his residence during the special revision and had carefully collected details of all family members, including signatures.
“There should have been no scope for any mistake,” he said, terming the inclusion of unknown names as “mysterious”.
Choudhury said he contacted the concerned BLO, who assured him that the issue would be addressed in January. However, no action has been taken so far.
He also pointed out that correction forms available on the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s website do not clearly explain how to remove names of unknown persons. The forms only mention deletion in cases of death, permanent migration, or foreign nationality.
Expressing concern, Choudhury said the presence of unknown voters linked to his house could create problems in the future. He said he may approach the Latasil police station if necessary.
A similar problem has been reported from house number 15 on the same road. The house owner, Kazi Nekib Ahmed, said only two genuine voters live at his address—himself and Mamata Brahma. However, the voter list also includes names of Rajesh Kumar Prasad (26), Bajneesh Kumar Prasad (23), and Afnan Yamin Barul (21).
Ahmed said he has never heard of these individuals and confirmed that none of them have ever lived in his house, even as tenants.
He suspects either a serious error by the Election Commission od India (ECI) or a deliberate conspiracy, and demanded a clear explanation on how such names were added to the draft voter list.
The incident has renewed political concerns over alleged vote theft. It may be recalled that ahead of the Bihar elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had raised strong allegations of voter list manipulation and cited evidence related to irregularities in Bihar’s electoral rolls.