No system yet to detect voters registered in two States, officials admit

As the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is set to take off from Thursday in Telangana, officials admitted that there was no mechanism to identify and filter individuals who hold voting rights in two different States.City & Local Guides

While there was no system yet to filter out those with votes in two States, State-level Training Nodal Officer B Chennaiah said that holding two votes was an offence. As per the Representation of the People Act, 1950, individuals found to possess more than one vote were liable for punishment, he said.

The officer from the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) gave a presentation on the SIR at the Telangana Press Academy here on Monday.

He mentioned that a review of the voter list across the State revealed certain discrepancies in the details of nearly 89.88 lakh voters.

There was nothing to worry about. Measures were being taken to rectify these errors and ensure transparency in the voter



list. These voters would be issued notices and they would have to submit documents for rectification, he explained.

Chennaiah noted that the Election Commission was prioritising the provision of voting rights to destitute and homeless persons. Such individuals could contact their local Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to obtain an Enumeration Form and register as voters, he said.

“Many people fear that lack of vote mapping could pave the way for deletion of their votes. It is not the case and they will be issued an Enumeration Form for registration,” Chennaiah said.

SIR was being taken up to remove ineligible persons and the names of deceased persons from the voters’ list, while adding eligible individuals.

The door-to-door enumeration and distribution of Enumeration Forms will be conducted from June 25 to July 24. The draft electoral rolls will be published on July 31 and the final voter list will be released on October 1.