New Delhi, Oct 15 For the first time, the Election Commission will share “readable” version of voters’ list with political parties in 17 states and Union territories where it ordered the annual special summary revision of electoral rolls on Thursday.
The states where SSR will be held include Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur, where polls are due “early next year”.
The final rolls in these states and UTs will be published on January 4.
A senior EC functionary explained that SSR is an annual exercise mandated under election law. It is specially held in poll-bound states.
A machine-readable voter list has been a key demand of opposition parties.
The EC has till now turned down this demand, citing fudging concerns and court orders.
In a key change, the EC will provide political parties with soft copies. Draft and final electoral rolls (without photos) will now be provided in “readable PDF format” instead of image PDF format.
At the draft stage, addition, deletion, and modification supplements will be shared with recognised political parties.
The move comes amid allegations of mass voter deletions without keeping parties in the loop.
In these 17 states, special intensive revision of voters’ list is over.
In Assam, a special revision instead of SIR took place because of legal reasons. Candidates in poll-bound states will also be shared draft and final rolls. Rolls will be put up for sale by electoral registration officers, or EROs, before elections.
Alphabetically arranged electoral rolls can now be provided in a pen drive or other electronic storage device for a price, instead of being limited to CDs or DVDs.
EROs will now share the weekly list of claims and objections, along with the printed copy of previous weeks, moving beyond strictly incremental sharing.
To ensure youths’ inclusion, those turning 18 on or before January 1 next will be encouraged to fill enrollment forms, helping them become voters ahead of polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab.
EC told its officials that polls in these states are due “early next year”.
In its letter to chief electoral officers of these states, the poll authority said January 1, 2027, will be the qualifying date.
The revision aims to enrol eligible voters, particularly young and first-time electors, correct electoral roll entries and improve the purity of voter lists.
In SSR, there will be no house-to-house BLO visits, as SIR has already taken place and electors have largely been identified.
States where an SSR will be held are: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal.
The term of the 403-member UP assembly ends on May 22 next year.
The 60-member Manipur, 40-member Goa, 117-member Punjab and 70-member Uttarakhand dissolve on different dates in March 2027.
The Representation of the People Act, 1950, allows the EC to hold polls “earlier than six months before the term expires.
(PTI News)
