India’s voter roll overhaul fuels citizenship fears: ‘what if they ask us to leave?’

India is currently undertaking a massive overhaul of its voter lists, a process that has inadvertently triggered widespread anxiety and fear regarding citizenship among millions of residents. The administrative effort requires citizens to repeatedly prove their credentials and documentation to retain their voting status.

For vulnerable individuals, such as Laddli Khatun, the updates present a daunting bureaucratic hurdle. Scrambling through piles of personal documents from bags, citizens fear that failing to satisfy the requirements could ultimately lead to disenfranchisement or expulsion from the country, casting a shadow over the democratic process in the world's largest democracy.