ECI orders special drive to enrol left-out voters, focus on young and first-time electors

New Delhi, Oct 2 (UNI) The Election Commission of India has directed Chief Electoral Officers, District Election Officers and Electoral Registration Officers in States and union Territories where the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has been completed to launch a special drive to identify and enrol eligible voters who may have been left out of the rolls, with particular emphasis on young and first-time electors.

In a letter dated October 1, the Commission said the exercise would be undertaken as part of the continuous updation of electoral rolls and would identify persons whose names appeared in the pre-SIR electoral rolls but were not found in the current rolls, while also facilitating the enrolment of newly eligible voters.

The directive followed a meeting of the Commission with all Chief Electoral Officers on October 1 and came in continuation of its communication of September 29. The ECI had earlier stated that SIR had been completed in 20 States and union Territories, including Bihar and West Bengal, and that persons whose names were left out during or after the revision, as well as young and first-time voters, could seek inclusion through the continuous updation process.

Under the latest instructions, Booth Level Officers will compare the current electoral roll with the pre-SIR roll and prepare booth-wise lists of electors whose names appeared in the earlier rolls but are missing from the current rolls. BLOs have been asked to undertake house-to-house visits to ascertain the present status of such persons and facilitate their enrolment through Form 6 wherever they are found eligible.

The Commission has directed BLOs to cover at least 20 to 25 such electors every week, with the objective of completing the exercise in about a month. The status of every identified elector will be recorded, including whether a Form 6 application has been submitted. During the house-to-house visits, BLOs have also been instructed to identify and facilitate the enrolment of any other eligible voter who may have been left out, including first-time and young electors. The lists prepared by BLOs will be shared with Booth Level Agents of recognised political parties, while Electoral Registration Officers will receive the lists along with Form 6 applications and field verification reports.

The EROs will subsequently take appropriate decisions in accordance with the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. At the conclusion of the exercise, the EROs will also share booth-wise lists with representatives of political parties, providing another opportunity to assist in identifying eligible electors who may have been left out.

The Commission has further directed election authorities to organise Booth Level Camps to facilitate applications for enrolment. Special camps may also be organised for people living in night shelters and labour colonies, as well as for homeless and other marginalised persons. Emphasising that voter enrolment is a continuous process, the ECI said a person who had not yet been enrolled, or whose name had been deleted from the electoral roll, could apply for enrolment at any point of time.

The objective of the special drive, it said, was to identify and facilitate the enrolment of all such eligible electors. The Commission has also asked CEOs, DEOs and EROs to undertake awareness and mobilisation programmes through educational institutions, local outreach initiatives, Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) activities, regular press briefings and other platforms to ensure that eligible citizens are made aware of the opportunity to register.

The latest directive comes amid continuing scrutiny of the SIR exercise and concerns over electors whose names may not have appeared in the rolls after the revision. On September 26, the Commission had said that in States and union Territories where SIR had been completed, a special drive would be launched immediately to facilitate the enrolment of left-out as well as young and first-time eligible electors.

The ECI has also directed election authorities to closely monitor and regularly review the progress of the exercise at the levels of the Chief Electoral Officer, District Election Officer and Electoral Registration Officer to ensure that the drive reaches all eligible citizens.

UNI SKA ARN