NEW DELHI: Chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar Tuesday rubbished allegations regarding arbitrary additions and deletions in electoral rolls, saying political parties are taken along at each stage of the electoral rolls updation process, which is strictly as per laid down protocols that ensure transparency and accountability.
Speaking against the backdrop of allegations by Delhi CM Atishi that electoral rolls in the state were tampered to influence the polls, Kumar insisted that no deletions from rolls could be made without filling up the statutory forms, mandatory field verification by block-level officer, documentation via death certificate and cross verification where deletions surpass 2% of total voters in a polling station. Even after publication of draft electoral rolls, claims and objections are invited from public and aggrieved electors given a hearing ahead of finalisation of rolls.
Stating that the process for additions and deletions is transparent, rigorous, and immune to arbitrary changes, the CEC insisted that “every step of the electoral roll process is rooted in transparency and accountability…Deletion of names is not possible without adhering to strict protocols, and every political party has the right to raise objections at various stages.”
Kumar said names were added through Form 6 and field verification by BLOs, while holding regular meetings with political parties, represented by booth-level agents, and sharing with them the list of objections on a weekly basis. The draft roll and final roll copies were provided free of cost to parties, which were also consulted on the rationalisation of polling stations.
The CEC said parties bringing the otherwise transparent and statutory electoral processes into doubt tend to create disenchantment among young voters and discourage them from coming out to vote.
Kumar also used the opportunity to slam political parties for questioning EVMs time and again, latest being alleging a correlation between its battery life and result, and claiming an “unexplained” surge in turnout between end of polling hours and end of polling day. Kumar said turnout figures could never be put out in real-time unless EVMs are connected to the internet.
EVM, said Kumar, couldn’t be tampered, hacked or rigged, as confirmed by 42 court judgments and 100% matching thus far of 4.5 lakh paper slips from 67,000 VVPATs with corresponding EVM counts.
