‘No name can be deleted from voter list under pressure’

Varanasi: Reacting to allegations of deletion of names from the electoral roll under pressure from influential people, UP chief electoral officer Navdeep Rinwa said that any name can be removed only by following prescribed provisions and not under the pressure of any individual. Rinwa reiterated that the final electoral roll, on completion of the special intensive revision (SIR), will be released on Apr 10.Talking to reporters on Monday at the cultural complex Chowkaghat after inspecting the hearing process under SIR at the composite school at Kabirchauraha, he announced that the final voter list for the entire state will be published on Apr 10, which will be used as a permanent record for future elections.
He said that the hearing process on claims and objections is ongoing under the voter list revision process. In the morning, the hearing process at the composite school was inspected. The arrangements, transparency of hearings, timeliness and voter experience were reviewed there, so that the process can be made more effective and smooth.Rinwa said that a meeting was held with representatives of various political parties for about 40-45 minutes. They shared their experiences and suggestions regarding the revision process, which were noted. The commission also presented complete information about the process before them.He said that a dialogue programme was also organised with about 500 booth level officers (BLOs) and supervisors from assemblies across the state. This will discuss challenges faced in the field, difficulties and suggestions to make the system more efficient in future. BLOs and supervisors who did excellent work will also be honoured.The CEO said that the commission's effort is to make the entire voter list revision process transparent, time-bound and error-free, so that the final list to be published can prove useful as a reliable and permanent document. The option to fill form-6, form-7 and form-8 will continue. Claims and objections will continue.Regarding state minister Ravindra Jaiswal's allegations, the district election officer said that in the first phase of verification, 4,500 votes were examined and only eight duplicate votes were found. Further investigation is ongoing. On the question of action, Rinwa said that action will be taken only if someone did this deliberately.During interaction with press representatives at Sanskritik Sankul, Rinwa said that no other person can interfere in the process of removing any person's name from the voter list. In this context, if someone objects or someone's name is to be struck off, an official notice will be issued to the person concerned. This process ensures that all parties get an opportunity to respond. He also stated that no forms will be accepted in bulk, so that transparency in the process is maintained. In response to a question, he said that identifying Bangladeshis is not the work of the election commission. Rinwa also stated that the EC's priority is to ensure that all voters are included in the voter list with correct and accurate information. He said that if a person's name is not in the list, they will be given an opportunity to add their name under the proper procedure. For this, necessary documents and information will have to be submitted.He also said that it is the EC's responsibility to keep the electoral process fair and transparent. All necessary steps will be taken for this. Rinwa said in conversation with the media that the commission will not come under any kind of pressure, and all decisions will be taken impartially.