Poll bodies at international meet focus on pure electoral rolls

Poll management bodies from various countries have decided to focus on evolving “pure” electoral rolls and providing a photo identity card to every elector. At the end of an international conference on democracy and election management here, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said the views expressed by heads and members of various poll management bodies included the need for pure electoral rolls. “Pure electoral rolls containing names of all electors according to law are the foundation of any democracy,” Kumar said in his concluding remarks.

He also said the election management bodies should strive to provide photo identity cards to all electors for easy and transparent conduct of elections.

The CEC also underlined the need for the involvement of all stakeholders at all levels in elections.

The EC also offered to collaborate with international poll management bodies to help them develop technology platforms similar to ECINET, as well as training support for their officials in election management.

The poll panel made these offers during bilateral meetings with the heads of various election management bodies attending the conference.

Besides offering tech support and collaboration to develop technology platforms, the EC also offered to provide training support to officials of the election management bodies (EMBs) through the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM), its training arm.

The poll panel has carried out a special intensive revision of the voters’ list in various States and Union Territories (UTs) to clean up the electoral rolls. Opposition parties have been attacking the BJP Government and the EC over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), alleging it is a move to manipulate votes. However, the Government and the EC have denied the charge.

Phase II of the SIR began in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal on November 4 last year.

In Assam, a separate ‘special revision’ of electoral rolls is in progress.

The last SIR in the States will serve as the cut-off date, just as the 2003 voter list of Bihar was used by the EC for intensive revision. Most States had the last SIR of the voter list between 2002 and 2004.

The primary aim of the SIR is to weed out foreign illegal migrants by checking their place of birth. The move assumes significance in the wake of a crackdown in various States on illegal migrants, including those from Bangladesh and Myanmar.