New Delhi, Apr 1 (PTI) The Delhi Congress on Wednesday sought urgent clarifications from the chief electoral officer on the “legal and procedural risks” in allowing party-appointed booth level agents to certify voter details, among other concerns over the SIR exercise.
In a letter to the Delhi chief electoral officer (CEO), the party further highlighted issues related to verification responsibilities, transparency and the use of past electoral rolls as a reference.
Delhi party president Devender Yadav said the current arrangement — where booth level agents (BLAs) can collect up to 50 filled enumeration forms per booth daily and submit them with an undertaking certifying their correctness — was “neither practical nor legally appropriate”.
“Verification
of voter application details is the statutory responsibility of election officials such as booth level officers, assistant electoral registration officers, and electoral registration officers. Expecting BLAs, who represent political parties, to certify such details may shift the Commission’s responsibility onto parties and lead to avoidable disputes,” Yadav said in the letter.
He added that assigning such responsibilities to BLAs could create “confusion, possible misuse and potential liability for errors beyond their control”.
The party also questioned the reported use of the 2002 electoral roll as a base document, stating that constituency boundaries have since undergone major changes following delimitation. “Without proper area-wise mapping between 2002 and present constituencies, it would be extremely difficult to trace voter names accurately,” Yadav said, urging the CEO to provide constituency-wise details of 2002 rolls in both printed and digital formats.
The Congress further sought the supply of frozen photo electoral rolls after finalisation to aid voter identification. PTI MSJ PRK
