For Maharashtra civic polls, SEC seeks EC nod for ‘supplementary’ voters list

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra election commission has ur-ged EC to allow additions and deletions to the July 1 voter list being used for the local body polls up to Oct 15. In a letter, it asked that additional names be included as a supplementary voter list while maintaining the cutoff date of July 1.EC has not yet sent its response to the letter, written two weeks ago, said sources. The letter was also addressed to the state’s chief electoral officer, S Chockalingam.This comes at a time when the opposition has been alleging that the voter list is bloated with duplicate names, resulting in “vote chori”, and has demanded that the cutoff date for the electoral roll be extended to Nov 7.Sources in the state election commission (SEC) said it asked for a supplementary list till Oct 15 in order to accommodate more voters in the electoral roll since there is a substantial gap between the July 1 cutoff and the local body polls, which are yet to be announced.Officials said the use of a supplementary list will not delay the poll process, which has to conclude by the Jan 31 deadline set by Supreme Court. “The ward formation and reservations have been done on the basis of the July 1 voter list and the estimated population is pegged to the 2011 Census. This will not have to be redone if a supplementary list is included,” said a senior official. SEC has written to district collectors and divisional commissioners asking them to verify duplicate names on the list. District authorities have been asked to check details to ensure that duplicate names are indeed of different people. They then have to contact the voter and ask them to fill an application on the ward they wish to vote from. In the remaining wards, they will be listed as a duplicate voter and not be permitted to cast their ballot. In case district authorities are not able to contact the voter who has a duplicate name, then their name will be listed as a duplicate voter. They will be able to vote only after filing an affidavit that they have not voted elsewhere and then will not be allowed to vote from other wards. Also, their identity will have to be thoroughly checked, the state election commission’s order said. Election authorities are currently using software to identify double entries or duplicate names on the voter list.