Karnataka: 43.8 lakh voters flagged for discrepancies in electoral roll revision
The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Karnataka, has identified over 20.35 lakh voters whose enumeration forms contain what officials term “logical discrepancies”. These anomalies, spread across nine categories, have led to the issuance of notices to a total of 43.80 lakh voters across the state. Of these, 24.05 lakh notices are concentrated in Bengaluru alone.
The Special Summary Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is a routine exercise conducted to update and correct voter data. However, the scale of discrepancies has raised concerns about the accuracy of the electoral roll and the potential disenfranchisement of eligible voters. Apart from the 20.35 lakh cases of logical discrepancies, another 23.45 lakh people will receive notices because their own or their parents’ details could not be found in the 2002 electoral roll.
What are the nine categories of anomalies?
The nine categories of anomalies identified by the election office include: a gap of less than 15 years or more than 50 years between a parent and child; a gap of less than 40 years between a voter and grandparent; different father’s names in the current and last SIR; a gap of less than nine months between siblings; more than six children mapped to a single parent; cases where a parent present in the current enrolment of a state SIR is considered invalid during progeny mapping, resulting in anomalies for all children mapped to that parent’s last SIR record; different names in the current and last SIR enrolment; and different father’s names in the current and last SIR enrolment in cases of self-mapping.
Importantly, “different” can also mean a mere spelling variation between documents. For instance, if a spelling mistake in a person’s father’s name differs from the spelling in the father’s own document, that too is flagged as a logical discrepancy.
Notice process and hearings
The notices will be served by Booth Level Officers (BLOs), while hearings will be conducted by the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO). The venue for hearings will be any government premises, such as a police station or a government building nearest to the polling station.
A voter receiving a notice must meet the ERO in person, even if they submit documents online. The notice will mention the reason for the notice, along with the name, place and date of the hearing. A BLO will make only two attempts to serve the notice. If a person does not attend the hearing, the ERO/AERO will reschedule it only once.
The notice can be served to anyone on the voter’s behalf, but only the voter can appear for the hearing. The notice is published in both Kannada and English.
Concerns over transparency
One major concern is that there is no way for a voter to check online whether they have been flagged for an anomaly. This has led to criticism that the process lacks transparency. Election officials, however, maintain that the notices will be delivered promptly and that the hearings will provide an opportunity for voters to clarify their records.
The revision of electoral rolls is a critical exercise to ensure the integrity of the electoral process. With elections likely in the coming months, the accuracy of the voter list is of paramount importance. The authorities have urged voters to cooperate with BLOs and attend the hearings to avoid any risk of disenfranchisement.
