New Delhi, 26 September (H.S.): The Election Commission on Saturday decided to provide relief to voters who receive notices during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls due to being ‘unmapped’ or having logical discrepancies. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will visit the homes of such voters to collect the required documents and upload them on ECINet. Under normal circumstances, these voters will not be required to appear before the offices of the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) for hearings.

The Commission said hearings would be conducted only in exceptional circumstances, at the discretion of the ERO, and would preferably be held online. If necessary, a voter may authorise an adult member of the family to appear at the hearing on their behalf. The Commission has also decided to strengthen facilities for online hearings.

The Commission directed District Election Officers (DEOs) to establish an adequate number of facilitation centres and organise special camps, wherever required, for people living in night shelters, workers, the poor and homeless persons. The Commission said the declaration attached to Form 6 used during the SIR has been upheld by the Supreme Court. Outside the SIR period, the prescribed form under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, will be used for voter registration.

The Commission also decided to constitute a committee headed by a Senior Deputy Election Commissioner to review the ECINet system. The committee will include an independent expert from an IIT/IIIT. It will examine whether ECINet is functioning in accordance with the applicable Acts and Rules and submit its report to the Commission. The Commission said several improvements had already been made to the portal based on suggestions received from the Chief Electoral Officers of the states.

At the request of the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi, the Commission has extended the period for filing claims and objections until October 30. The deadline for issuing notices and disposing of claims and objections has been extended until November 30. In Maharashtra, the last date for filing claims and objections has been extended to October 12, while the period for their disposal has been extended until November 10.

The Commission said the SIR has been completed in 20 states and Union Territories, including Bihar and West Bengal. Those whose names were omitted from the electoral rolls during or after the SIR may apply to the concerned ERO for inclusion of their names through the continuous updation process. Young people and first-time voters may also apply. The Commission has directed the Chief Electoral Officers to immediately launch special drives to facilitate the registration of such voters.

The Commission also said that in Goa, BLOs have been instructed to undertake door-to-door visits to collect forms from voters whose names have been left out. Of the 97 such voters, 81 have so far filled out Form 6 to seek inclusion of their names. The Commission clarified that all decisions taken at the meeting on September 26 have received the approval of the Full Commission.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar