Minority groups in Gariaband and other districts unite after claims that Muslim and Christian voters are being marked absent and removed from the electoral rolls
RAIPUR — A major political row has broken out in Chhattisgarh over allegations that names of Muslim and other minority voters are being removed during the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The controversy has spread from Gariaband district to several other regions, with opposition leaders accusing local officials linked to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of misusing Form 7 to delete names from voter lists.
Minority communities in the Chhura area of Gariaband district have held meetings and submitted complaints after receiving notices from the Tehsil office. Many residents claim they were wrongly marked as “absent” despite living at the same address for years.
One resident said, “I have been voting from this ward for more than 15 years. Suddenly, I am told my name is under objection. How can that happen without even informing me?”
Under election rules, Form 7 can be used to object to the inclusion of a name in the voter list. However, minority leaders allege that the form is being used selectively against Muslim voters.
Community members in Chhura claim that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) with links to the BJP are filing objections without proper verification.
A resident of Gariaband said, “People who are regularly at home are being shown as missing. We were shocked when notices came. This is not a simple clerical error.”
The issue, according to complainants, is not limited to one block. In remote areas such as Fingeshwar and Devbhog, similar allegations have emerged. Local activists claim that more than 300 minority voters have been affected in those blocks alone.
The Congress party has come out in support of the affected voters. District President Sukhchand Besra led a delegation to submit a memorandum to the Tehsil office and the local police station, demanding a formal investigation.
Besra said, “If names are being removed without proper inquiry, it is a serious attack on democracy. Every eligible citizen has the right to vote.”
Congress leaders have described the alleged deletions as a move to weaken minority voting strength in certain constituencies.
The matter took a sharper turn after Aminul Khan, identified as the state in-charge of the BJP’s Minority Affairs Department, spoke publicly about discrimination under the SIR process.
Speaking in Raipur, Khan said, “Muslims, Christians and other minorities are facing harassment. Objections are being filed without information or proof. This is creating fear among people.”
He added, “Chhattisgarh was known as a peaceful state. Today, minorities feel insecure about their basic rights.”
Khan also referred to ongoing disputes over graveyards and said, “The atmosphere is changing. Communities feel pressured.”
Parvez, an activist from Ambikapur, alleged that the scale of the issue is larger than reported.
He said, “More than 1,300 Muslims and other minorities are being targeted. Their names are being removed, and no clear reason is being given.”
According to him, complaints have been filed with the police, but no action has yet been taken. “We have approached authorities, but there is silence. This silence is worrying,” he said.
There has been no detailed official response from the state BJP leadership regarding the specific allegations of misuse of Form 7.
Election officials have maintained that the SIR process is a routine exercise meant to update voter lists and remove duplicate or ineligible entries. A senior official said, “The process is governed by clear rules. Any citizen who receives a notice has the right to respond and present documents.”
Legal experts say that if names are removed without proper verification, it can raise serious concerns about electoral fairness.
A constitutional law expert in Raipur said, “The right to vote is fundamental in a democracy. Transparency in the review process is essential. Allegations of selective targeting must be investigated quickly.”
For many in Chhattisgarh’s minority communities, the issue is not only about paperwork but about trust.
As one elderly voter in Gariaband put it, “We are not asking for favour. We are only asking that our names remain where they belong — on the voter list.”
