Bihar’s Seemanchal region which accommodates four districts – Araria, Kishanganj, Purnia and Katihar – has witnessed a significant voter deletion in the draft electoral roll. Since the region is close to Bangladesh and shares boundaries with Nepal, these four districts, which have a high Muslim population, are known for infiltration.
Araria saw a deletion of 1,58,072 voters, Kishanganj 1,45,668, Purnia 2,73,920 and Katihar 1,84,254 in the draft list. Now after the deletion, the number of voters in Araria stands at 19,24,414; Kishanganj 10,86,242; Purnia 19,94,511 and Katihar 20,44,809. The Seemanchal region, which has 24 assembly seats, is considered a tough battlefield for both main political players – ruling NDA and main Opposition INDIA bloc (previously known as Mahagathbandhan) because of polarisation of voters on communal lines during the elections.
In most of the 24 constituencies, the candidates faced close contests in the previous elections. In 2020 assembly polls, AIMIM had made its presence felt in this region by bagging five seats. The presence of AIMIM candidates in different seats of this region was a major source of trouble for the Mahagtahbandhan then. Although a clear political picture of the Seemanchal region will emerge after the final publication of electors’ list, both the NDA and INDIA bloc are set to swing into action to ensure proper verification of the draft list of electors in this region.