Voting in one of India’s most closely watched state elections has begun after a national voter roll revision removed millions of names and raised concerns over disenfranchisement.
Romita Datta And Sheikh SaaliqAn elderly voter poses for a photograph after casting her vote during the first phase of polling in Nandigram, in West Bengal state, India, Thursday, April 23, 2026.
A security person assists voters standing in a queue at a polling booth during the first phase of voting in West Bengal state elections in Nandigram, India, Thursday, April 23, 2026. Posters with Trinamool Congress party chief Mamata Banerjee are fixed on back of auto-rickshaws ahead of the West Bengal state Legislative Assembly elections, in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, April 22, 2026.
Police personnels check a car as part of security measures ahead of the West Bengal state Legislative Assembly elections, in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. Supporters of Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, shout slogans during a campaign rally for their candidate ahead of the West Bengal state Legislative Assembly elections, in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, April 22, 2026.
An elderly voter poses for a photograph after casting her vote during the first phase of polling in Nandigram, in West Bengal state, India, Thursday, April 23, 2026. removed millions of names and raised concerns over disenfranchisement in West Bengal, one of the few large states not governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party. The election has national implications.
Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is seeking gains in a state long dominated by a regional opposition party, while a victory for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee would bolster her position as a leading opposition figure. A second phase of polling is scheduled for next week. Voting also was taking place Thursday in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.testing the BJP's reach in opposition strongholds.
The results of the latest elections and the earlier polls in Kerala and Assam states and the federally administered territory of Puducherry were expected May 4. The election is taking place after a sweeping revision of electoral rolls by the Election Commission of India aimed at removing duplicate, deceased and ineligible voters.
Officials say about 9 million names — roughly 12% of the electorate — were deleted, including 6.3 million listed as deceased or absent and 2.7 million marked “doubtful” and pending verification. Some affected voters said they had voted in previous elections and hold valid identification but were removed without clear explanation.
Sheikh Najrul Islam, a 53-year-old paramilitary officer on election duty in West Bengal, said he last voted in 2021 and holds valid identification documents, yet his name no longer appears on the voter list.
“The Election Commission has deputed me to ensure free and fair polls. Yet, it does not consider me a citizen of this country,” he said. In another case, Taibunessa Begum, a 62-year-old retired school administrator, said she was shocked to find her name deleted despite having a passport, pension records and earlier voter registration. Opposition leaders allege the deletions disproportionately affect Muslims and other marginalized communities.
The Election Commission of India has denied the allegations, saying the exercise eliminated dead, duplicate and fake voters on the electoral roll. Modi’s party said the revision was a routine administrative exercise carried out across multiple states and argued that any disproportionate impact in West Bengal reflects the presence of undocumented migrants. They say many Hindu voters were also removed.
Critics, however, link the deletions to broader political messaging by Modi and some BJP leaders, who have repeatedly suggested the revisions of the voter lists targeted people who immigrated illegally from neighboring Bangladesh. Opposition leaders said such rhetoric has deepened fears among minority communities, particularly Muslims, that the voter roll revision is being used to exclude them.
"The motive is to disenfranchise voters,” he said. “Losing one’s place in the electoral roll can be deeply unsettling. It is not only about voting rights; it is about dignity, recognition, and the assurance that one counts as a citizen,” political analyst Iman Kalyan Lahiri said.
“This is not just about politics,” said Begum. “It is about identity, about whether we belong to this country. ”Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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