Aizawl, September 4, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Members of the ‘Delete Church’ community in Mizoram have told Chief Electoral Officer Garima Gupta that they do not wish to have their names included in the electoral roll, saying enrolment is incompatible with their religious beliefs, officials said on Friday.
The term “Delete Church” refers to a small religious community, particularly found in areas such as Champhai and Zotlang in eastern Mizoram, whose members follow religious beliefs that prevent them from enrolling in secular government electoral rolls, according to a Mizoram government official.
As part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Gupta visited members of the community in Zotlang and Champhai after meeting district election officials, civil society organisations and political party representatives during her visit to Champhai district, which borders Myanmar.
The CEO interacted with community members to understand their reasons for choosing not to enrol in the electoral roll. The members received the visiting officials and held a cordial discussion with them.
“During the interaction, members of the Delete Church informed the CEO that they did not wish to have their names included in the Electoral Roll as they felt that doing so was not compatible with their religious beliefs,” an official said.
Gupta was accompanied by Joint CEO Ethel Rothangpuii, Champhai Election Officer Ngulzaṭhuama and Champhai South Assistant Electoral Registration Officer Lalchhuanawma Ralte.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India is carrying out SIR-2026 to ensure accurate electoral rolls, remove ineligible names and include all eligible Indian citizens. The final electoral roll in Mizoram is scheduled to be published on September 7.
Gupta had earlier said Mizoram was the first among the 16 states and two Union Territories undertaking SIR to achieve 100 per cent digitisation of the enumeration process.
The draft electoral rolls were published across all 11 districts on July 4. With July 1, 2026, as the qualifying date, the draft roll contains 8,28,906 registered voters, including 4,29,881 women and 3,99,025 men.
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