Tale of 96 seats: How SIR reshaped Bengal’s vote map

Special Intensive Revision, a chaotic process of the Election Commission, caused so many barriers for the normal voters. The process ends with the deletion of 27.16 lakh names from the electoral roll, which fell into a new criterion named ‘logical discrepancies. Also, the process took the voting rights of 60 lakh people whose names came in a new criterion named ‘Under adjudication’. These things massively changed the numbers of the 2026 elections, which led to a record turnout of 92.25% of polling and 31 lakhs more votes polled this year compared to 2021.

In the 96 seats of Bengal, SIR has made a significant impact. In the 48 seats of Bengal, the number of voters is lower compared to 2021. These 48 seats have seen a 28% dip in the number of voters, with a huge number of 27.16 lakh deletions.

Highest deletions in SIR

Samserganj recorded the steepest decline, with a 17.8% drop and 74,775 deletions, followed by Lalgola and Bhagabangola. Most seats show reduced voter turnout in 2026 compared to 2021, indicating a strong correlation between deletions and polling decline.

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However, a few constituencies like Raghunathganj, Suti, Jangipur, and Ratua saw increased turnout despite significant deletions. Overall, the data suggest that large-scale voter list revisions may have impacted participation, though the effect varies across regions depending on local electoral dynamics. BJP had won 15 of these 48 seats in 2021.

The story of 48 other seats

Among 246 constituencies where voter numbers rose compared to 2021, 48 seats registered an increase of at least 20,000 votes each. These seats contributed 42% of the total additional votes but saw relatively low deletions, about 2.66 lakh in total, averaging 5,548 per seat.

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The BJP had secured 14 of these seats in 2021. Overall deletions, however, varied sharply, ranging from 74,775 in Samserganj to just 71 in Manbazar. Despite both recording over 90% turnout, Samserganj saw a 17.8% drop in votes polled, while Manbazar posted a 9.6% increase, highlighting stark contrasts.