Punjab BJP writes to EC, state’s chief electoral officer flagging SIR ‘irregularities’

New Delhi, July 15 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Punjab unit has written to the Election Commission of India (ECI) alleging irregularities in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state and urged the poll panel to ensure strict compliance with its guidelines for fair and transparent verification of votes.

Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon, in a letter to the ECI as well as the Punjab chief electoral officer (CEO), claimed that the poll officials are collecting information unrelated to the SIR exercise and seeking unauthorised documents from voters and also sought urgent intervention by the polling body and a detailed inquiry into alleged wrongdoings.

“Some officials are collecting data from electors relating to various schemes of the Punjab government and persuading or inducing them to avail such schemes. These are wholly unrelated to the purpose of the SIR exercise,” the letter highlighted.

It states that complaints have been received from various places where Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are collecting documents, unrelated and unrequired for the SIR, and hence troubling the genuine electors.

The voter verification exercise in Punjab, slated from June 25 to July 24 for mapping 2.14 crore voters in the state, ran into controversy some time ago, over Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s appeal to eligible voters to participate in the SIR process as this would help them not only safeguard their voting rights but also ensure that they remain recipients of govt welfare schemes.

Punjab BJP chief complained that the BLOs are demanding a range of documents from electors, including a rent deed or affidavit from the landlord and hence causing undue convenience to the electors, stressing that this was putting additional and unnecessary strain on the electors and was also making the process complicated and inconvenient.

In a slew of demands, he has sought immediate inquiry into illegal gathering of documents, disciplinary action against unauthorised activities and directions by the poll panel to the officials not to deviate from stipulated guidelines.

The state BJP unit has also urged the EC to ensure strict adherence to its prescribed guidelines so that the electoral roll revision is conducted in a free, fair, transparent and citizen-friendly manner.

Notably, the enumeration exercise under the SIR drive of electoral rolls commenced across Punjab on June 25, with about 25,000 BLOs undertaking the survey of households in the state.

The voter verification drive under SIR assumes significance as the state is headed to the Assembly elections, slated early next year.

–IANS

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