SIR won’t affect genuine voters: Jharkhand CEO

Ranchi: State’s chief electoral officer (CEO) K Ravi Kumar on Saturday sought to allay fears about voter list deletions, saying that constitutional safeguards will ensure that no eligible voter is removed during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

The clarification follows anxiety in several areas over claims that voter names could be struck off once the SIR begins. Sources said some Ranchi residents recently approached the CEO’s office, where officials assured them that no eligible voter’s name would be deleted.

Citing Article 326 of the Constitution, Kumar said every Indian citizen aged 18 or above and ordinarily resident in a polling area is entitled to be enrolled as a voter. He urged eligible voters not to panic over rumours, stressing that constitutional safeguards protect genuine voters.

Election officials said false claims were fuelling unnecessary fear, including rumours that voters could be arbitrarily struck off or branded foreigners. References to “Bangladesh family” and talk of people being “sent to Bangladesh” have surfaced, underscoring the scale of misinformation in circulation.

The CEO said non-citizens cannot be on the voter rolls, but eligible Indian citizens have nothing to fear. “Our concern is about the citizens of India and not the ones who are not. They need not fill up the enumeration forms at all,” Kumar said, adding that eligibility hinges only on citizenship, age and residence in the polling area.

In Garhwa district, where some Iranian families reside, speculation has risen that such cases may come under scrutiny during the SIR exercise, likely after the ongoing Census is completed.

Kumar said, “Only eligible Indians can be enrolled, and ineligible non-citizens cannot be retained on the rolls.”

As part of preparatory verification, houses are being numbered to streamline checks and align electoral rolls with actual habitation.