The Election Commission of India (ECI) has instructed its state-level election machinery to meticulously identify and refer cases of suspected foreign nationals during the ongoing intensive revision of electoral rolls. This directive aims to ensure the integrity of the voter lists by removing individuals who are not citizens of India from the rolls.
The Chenab Times has learned that under the special intensive revision (SIR) process, Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are now mandated to forward details of individuals suspected of being foreign nationals to the competent authority as per the provisions of the Citizenship Act, 1955. Assistant EROs will be empowered to exercise the ERO’s powers independently in these matters.
Booth Level Officers (BLOs), who are at the forefront of the voter enumeration process, will also be responsible for identifying the probable cause for electors whose enumeration forms have not been returned. This includes marking entries as ‘absent’, ‘shifted’, ‘dead’, or identifying ‘duplicate entries’ based on inquiries with neighbouring voters.
This directive comes as the Election Commission gears up for a comprehensive revision of voter lists across several states and Union Territories. In a similar exercise conducted in Bihar last year, ECI officials had reported the presence of nationals from neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal, and Myanmar, who were allegedly found enrolled as voters. However, the commission had not publicly disclosed specific numbers or conclusive proof of such individuals at that time. Opposition parties had then alleged that the SIR exercise was politically motivated, aimed at targeting voters not aligned with the ruling party.
The current phase of the SIR was launched on May 14, encompassing 16 states and three Union Territories, covering an estimated 36.73 crore voters. The revision is being implemented in a phased manner, with the enumeration process commencing on May 30. The states and Union Territories involved in this phase include Delhi, Odisha, Mizoram, Sikkim, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Telangana, Punjab, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Nagaland, Tripura, and Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
Notably, opposition-ruled states such as Punjab, Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Telangana are also part of this voter list revision exercise. Over 3.94 lakh BLOs are undertaking door-to-door verification, assisted by approximately 3.42 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) appointed by political parties. The process involves scrutinizing the details of 36.73 crore electors.
The schedule for the SIR in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh is slated to be announced later, taking into consideration the prevailing weather conditions in the snow-bound regions. Meanwhile, the SIR has already been completed in Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep. A separate special revision was conducted in Assam.
Previous phases of the SIR have seen significant outcomes. In the second phase, which covered nine states and three Union Territories, the combined voter list saw a reduction of 10.2 per cent, with over 60 lakh deceased voters being removed. The total voter base across these 12 entities stood at over 50.99 crore before this reduction. Following the exercise, the electoral rolls have been revised to 45.81 crore, marking a decline of more than 5.18 crore voters, which translates to a 10.2 per cent decrease in the electoral rolls.
The SIR process has experienced periodic adjustments to its schedules. In the past, during the SIR in Bihar, political parties had approached the Supreme Court challenging the exercise in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. The Trinamool Congress president and the then Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, had also personally appealed against the electoral roll cleanup in her state.
The Chenab Times News Desk