Prakash Raj says name deleted from Bengaluru voter list in SIR revision

Actor Prakash Raj, a prominent critic of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, claimed on Tuesday that his name has been deleted from the electoral rolls in Bengaluru as part of a large-scale voter list revision in Karnataka. The actor, who contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as an independent candidate from the Bangalore Central constituency, stated in a video message that he is among approximately 65 lakh voters whose names have been flagged in the state's ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

The SIR is a comprehensive process to update electoral rolls, and in Karnataka, it has led to a significant number of voters being classified under the "Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate, or Other" (ASDDO) category. According to data from the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Karnataka, nearly half of Bengaluru's electorate-about 49 lakh out of 1.03 crore voters-have been placed in this category. Statewide, approximately 1.08 crore voters, or 19.66% of the 5.54 crore electorate mapped for the revision, are on the ASDDO list.

In his video posted on social media, Raj expressed his frustration, calling the situation a "joke." He emphasized that he was born, educated, and...