Report: 130 Million Voters Purged from India’s Electoral Rolls as Democratic Backsliding Accelerates
A new report reveals that approximately 130 million voters have been purged from India’s electoral rolls, raising alarm bells about the state of democracy in the world’s largest democracy. The purge, which critics say disproportionately targets minority and opposition-leaning voters, is part of a broader pattern of voter suppression under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Since coming to power in 2014, the BJP—the political arm of the Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) movement—has systematically undermined democratic institutions. The 2002 Gujarat pogrom, in which the BJP state government conspired with violent mobs to kill thousands of Muslims, was a key inflection point in Modi’s rise. Now, the Modi government is reportedly working closely with far-right allies in the United States and Israel, exchanging ideas on how to maintain power through voter suppression and other anti-democratic tactics.nnThe problems intensified in 2023 when the Modi government changed the process for appointing the three-member election commission, giving majority control to the government for the first time. This move has raised serious concerns about the independence of the body responsible for conducting elections. The voter purge, which came to light as millions of challenges to voter registrations remained unresolved, was permitted by the Supreme Court to proceed with voting despite the chaos. Critics argue that the purge is a deliberate strategy to disenfranchise voters who are likely to oppose the BJP. Even when the party has lost elections, it has found ways to buy off legislators from other parties, cobbling together majority governments through graft and backroom dealings.nnThe human cost of these policies is stark. In July, a woman was pushed over the border to Bangladesh—a country she had never been to nor had any connection with—and remains stuck there, a victim of the government’s aggressive citizenship policies. US Representative Pramila Jayapal has voiced solidarity with Indian protesters, stating, “Non-violent resistance movements are essential in these moments, and I stand with the Indian people who are engaging in non-violent protests to counter anti-democratic efforts in India.” Jayapal also emphasized that protecting democracies everywhere is essential work, highlighting the global implications of India’s democratic decline.nnThe report underscores a troubling trend:
Shimanta Das 
