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While BJP has alleged that “lakhs of illegal infiltrator Rohingyas and Bangladeshi-origin voters” are included in the electoral roll, AAP accused BJP of deleting names of “those living in unauthorised colonies”
In its letter, the EC reiterated that the issues raised in representations of both the parties have to be examined carefully and necessary action taken. (PTI)
After receiving back-to-back complaints from Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and opposition BJP, the Election Commission of India on Friday wrote to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the Capital to follow strict protocol and keep the political parties in the loop about the Special Summary Revision in the city ahead of the scheduled assembly elections.
Both the parties had knocked on the EC’s door, alleging irregularities in the electoral roll.
In its letter, the EC reiterated that the issues raised in representations of both the parties — BJP’s demand to delete illegal/temporary migrants, ghost voters, and AAP’s plea to not undertake mass deletions of voters without proper enquiry — have to be examined carefully and necessary action taken strictly following the laid-down statutory provisions and guidelines contained in the manual of electoral rolls.
The EC directed the CEO that no deletion can take place without a corresponding Form-7 and all cases of deletions must be personally cross-verified by the Electoral Registration Officer if they fall in any of the two categories — deletions in polling stations where the number of deletions exceed 2 per cent of the total electors in the voter list of the polling station; and deletions where the same person is the objector in more than five cases.
“I am directed to convey that the extant process should be scrupulously followed by the entire machinery involved in the revision process, including EROs, AEROs, BLO supervisors and BLOs, so as to ensure that changes in the electoral roll during the SSR period are backed by proper enquiry with fullest possible participation of the political parties,” the ECI said.
The list of claims and objections, including Form-7, should regularly be shared with all political parties and also be uploaded on the website of CEO Delhi, the EC said.
“The objections to these claims and objections, including those raised by BLAs (Booth Level Agents) of the political parties before the concerned BLO/ERO, must be disposed of after proper scrutiny/hearing of the concerned,” the letter added.
BJP Demands Action Against Bogus Voting
The EC letter was issued hours after the BJP delegation, led by its president Virendra Sachdeva, met the commission on Friday. The party lodged a protest against the enrollment of ‘lakhs of illegal infiltrator Rohingyas and Bangladeshi origin’ voters apart from duplicate voters, non-existent address voters and thousands of dead persons in the voter lists of Delhi.
The BJP, with their 5,000 pages of evidence, demanded that the EC look into their complaint on legal merits on priority to ensure a true and transparent election for Delhi assembly.
“…It’s surprising that new voter registration of lakhs of voters happens every time between the period of conclusion of Lok Sabha elections and start of assembly elections in Delhi which is abnormally higher than in the yearly voter summary revision exercise,” the BJP said.
Sachdeva said they will not let infiltrators and bogus voters vote, requesting the EC to run a campaign against enrollment of illegal voters as well as against illegal voting.
Sachdeva said BJP BLAs and other workers have been visiting all 70 assembly constituencies in Delhi and have found the existence of lakhs of Bangladeshi or Rohingya-origin infiltrators registered as voters apart from duplicate voters and non-existent address voters.
“Every constituency in Delhi has a huge number of dead or permanently shifted voters in Delhi.,” they said.
AAP Wants Action Against Mass Deletions
AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday met the commission and a day later also wrote to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar.
Kejriwal reached the ECI with ‘3,000 pages of evidence’, alleging that BJP is running a voter-deletion racket.
“We presented 3,000 pages of evidence before the Election Commission, showing how the BJP is conspiring to delete votes on a massive scale in Delhi. These are the votes of long-time residents, particularly the poor, SCs, Dalits, Purvanchalis, and those living in slums and unauthorised colonies,” Kejriwal said after the meeting.
He also said they presented evidence of how a BJP office-bearer in Shahdara assembly secretly submitted a list to the Election Commission for the deletion of 11,008 voters, and the commission began acting on it clandestinely. In Janakpuri, 24 BJP workers applied to delete 4,874 votes. In Tughlakabad, 15 BJP workers applied to delete 2,435 votes.
The election in Delhi is due in February and the electoral roll that will be issued after this Special Summary Revision will be the final for the polls.
