Latur, Oct 24 Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Bharatsinh Solanki on Saturday alleged that crores of voters across the country had been unfairly deprived of their voting rights through large-scale deletions and discrepancies in electoral rolls.
The Congress plans to conduct marches, distribute pamphlets door-to-door and hold awareness meetings to ensure eligible citizens are registered by the end of December, he said.
He also announced a booth-level campaign to protect voters’ rights and ensure that every eligible citizen is included in the electoral rolls.
Addressing a press conference here, Solanki, an AICC observer, accused the Centre and the Election Commission of India (ECI) of allowing the misuse of electoral procedures.
“The country’s democracy and Constitution are under threat amid rising inflation, unemployment and corruption. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi have launched a nationwide campaign to raise awareness about electoral malpractices,” he said.
Speaking on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Solanki said the process had earlier been undertaken in 12 states and was currently underway in 17 states.
The ECI, despite being an independent constitutional body, is facing pressure from those in power, he alleged.
“In Latur city constituency, around 45,000 voter entries have been identified as suspicious or are potentially affected by discrepancies. These include more than 12,000 entries relating to deceased voters, over 6,000 suspected duplicate entries, and names of those who are absent, have migrated or are listed at incorrect addresses,” Solanki said.
To prevent eligible voters from being left out, the Congress has decided to appoint a Booth Level Agent-2 (BLA-2) in every polling booth, he said.
“The agents will work alongside Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to verify electoral rolls through door-to-door visits. The Congress will submit complaints to relevant authorities and, if necessary, pursue the matter before district election officials, the state election machinery and the Supreme Court,” he said.
The campaign will cover rural and remote areas as well as urban centres, with a special focus on disadvantaged communities and young voters, Solanki added.
(PTI News)
