Of the roughly 1.07 crore voters removed from Karnataka's draft electoral rolls under the ASDDO classification — covering those found absent, relocated, deceased, or duplicated — only about 10.07 lakh Form 6 applications seeking re-inclusion had come in by the time the rolls were frozen on 16 June for the special intensive revision, a figure that amounts to around 9 per cent of those dropped.

Those whose registrations were removed through the ASDDO process had one path back onto the electoral roll: submitting Form 6 as a fresh applicant before the claims and objections window closed on 23 September. Prior to the filing deadline, 7.86 lakh of the overall applications had been submitted, according to a statement from chief electoral officer Anbu Kumar. Those applicants, once their details have been checked and their paperwork cleared, will find their names added to the definitive SIR rolls.

How many applicants were removed through ASDDO has not been disclosed. A representative attached to the chief electoral officer's office told reporters on Friday that the figure could not be determined, given that the underlying database had been transferred to the Election Commission of India and the state office retained no further access to it.

The nine-per-cent figure overstates how much of that activity represents re-registration, because Form 6 is also the mechanism through which people join the electoral rolls for the first time.

Figures drawn from CEO records through 16 October pointed to notable variation from one district to another. Among all districts reviewed, Udupi stood apart — its Form 6 applications amounted to 26.3 per cent of ASDDO deletions, the only district to cross the 25 per cent threshold. Dakshina Kannada posted a share of 23.6 per cent, with Uttara Kannada at 18.2 per cent, Chikkamagaluru recording 16.3 per cent, and Tumakuru accounting for 16.1 per cent of the remainder.

Among the cities reviewed, Bengaluru recorded the lowest projected replacement rate. Among deletions processed under ASDDO authority, those originating from Form 6 submissions accounted for roughly one in twenty cases across BBMP South at 4.6 per cent, climbed to 5.6 per cent in BBMP Central, and reached 6.1 per cent in BBMP North. Figures for Bellary came in at 6.6 per cent, while Bengaluru Urban posted a rate of 6.7 per cent.

Voters without enrolment elsewhere — a group that includes those under the ASDDO designation — have access to Form 6. Following the release of the final SIR rolls on 27 October, the CEO's office intends to run an additional registration drive aimed at reaching voters who were not captured in the initial process.

As deadlines approach for the final rolls, questions are forming around whether the voter enumeration process — notably in Bengaluru's urban areas, where return rates have been lower — will leave some eligible residents off the updated electoral list.