Thousands of voters in Sambalpur district were deprived of exercising their franchise on Thursday as their names were not there in the voters’ list.
This was despite the administration’s claim that all efforts were made to increase the percentage of voting.
“I came to vote in the Deheripali booth in Sambalpur town. But my name is not there in the voters’ list. But I possess a valid voter ID card,” said Ananda Mishra of Ainthapali. “The names of my son and wife are also not there in the list. Hence, our entire family is deprived of voting,” said Mishra with strong comments on the efficiency of the officials in charge of preparing the list.
Surprisingly, people who saw their names in the list during the final notification a few months ago in the office of the Sub-Collector did not find them now. Besides, in many new voter ID cards the photographs and the names did not match.
A flawless electoral roll is non existent in Sambalpur and the State as a whole, commented many aggrieved people unable to cast their votes.
When contacted, Sub-Collector-cum-Returning Officer of Sambalpur Asembly constituency PK Sahu said the preparation of the voters’ list had been outsourced to an agency. “Mistakes on the part of the vendor created such a delicate situation,” he admitted.
Problems in the EVMs also disrupted voting for some time at the initial stage.
It was learnt that the elections all over Sambalpur district, especially in the Maoist-prone Redhakhol and Jujomura areas passed off peacefully amidst tight police
arrangements.