‘Only 747 registration applications received from homeless voters’: NGO writes to Delhi CEO, reports ‘not compliant’

On September 23 and 24, special camps were held in 130 city shelters across 43 constituencies in Delhi. Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

The non-profit organisation, which facilitated the two-day city-wide registration of homeless voters earlier this month, wrote to Delhi Chief Electoral Officer Ashok Kumar’s office on Wednesday (September 30, 2026) to say that only 747 applications for re-listing had been received at the special camps.

The Center for Holistic Development (CHD), which works with the urban homeless, also cited poor outreach, language barriers, low literacy and distrust of formal processes as possible reasons for “very low registration” in camps in 130 Delhi shelters run by the Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) in 43 constituencies on September 23 and 2222.

“Limited awareness among Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and poor communication through Voter Registration and Enrollment Centers (VRECs) coupled with inadequate Information, Education and Communication (IEC) outreach has left many homeless people unaware of their eligibility, required documents and camp timings,” CHD General Secretary Sunil Kumar Aledia said in a letter.

“We need 3 such discs”

“We have sent 747 forms, but we don’t know how many will make it to the final tally. At least three such units are needed in a year,” he told The Hindu, adding that it was the first time in five years that such camps were set up in the capital.

According to Mr. Aledia’s estimate, Delhi had more than 10,000 homeless voters before the Special Intensive Review (SIR) began. There is no data on how many homeless names have been removed from the draft list.

There are also cases where homeless voters are asked to produce documents against the guidelines issued by the Election Commission (EC).

Mr Aledia said copies of address proofs were attached to the application form of all 747 voters, indicating that all homeless voters were asked to provide proof of address.

Virendra Kaur, who is homeless, said she was asked for proof of address to sign up. | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

EC manual

According to the EC Electoral Rolls Manual 2023, homeless voters do not need to provide written proof of address to register as voters. Based on the address given in Form 6, a BLO is required to verify that the applicant resides there. A “zero” house number can also be used for homeless voters.

In the two camps the Hindus visited, the BLOs were unaware of this rule.

Virendra Kaur, 53, who visited one such camp, said she was asked to produce documents to prove her address and date of birth. Ms Kaur said she had lived around Bangla Sahib Gurdwara for as long as she could remember.

“I used to have Aadhaar, PAN and ration cards as well as bank documents, but I lost them all in the fire that gutted my makeshift house,” she said. The only document is the voter’s card. However, her name is misspelled on it, making it unusable for enrollment, she added.

Published – October 1, 2026 0:41 AM IST