New Delhi, 03 September (H.S.):

The Delhi High Court has said that Booth-Level Agents (BLAs) appointed by political parties during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls can be held responsible only for information that they are able to verify. BLAs cannot be held accountable for all the information contained in a voter’s Enumeration and Declaration Form. A Bench headed by Justice Amit Bansal made the observation while hearing a petition.

The High Court made the remarks during the hearing of a petition filed by leaders of the Delhi Congress challenging an Election Commission order that requires Booth-Level Agents of recognised political parties to furnish a personal undertaking stating that they have verified all the information provided in the Enumeration Form.

The petition, filed by Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav and chairman of the Delhi Congress Booth Management Committee Rajesh Garg, seeks directions for political parties to be provided with printed and soft copies of the 2002 electoral rolls, as well as frozen-photo electoral rolls, before the implementation of the Special Intensive Revision in Delhi.

The petition challenges Section 9(D)(4) of the Election Commission’s June 24, 2025, guidelines, under which Booth-Level Agents are required to personally verify information relating to the Enumeration Form and submit an undertaking to that effect.

The petition contends that verification of information relating to electoral rolls is a statutory responsibility of Booth-Level Officers (BLOs), Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) and Electoral Registration Officers (EROs). It argues that the responsibilities assigned by law to these officials cannot be imposed upon representatives of political parties.

The petition further contends that the Election Commission’s order is not in accordance with the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar