Name missing in electoral roll? Apply again, says BBMP

City voters who find their names missing in the revised electoral rolls are struggling to get it back on the list with the original EPIC (Electors Photo Identification Card) number.

They are particularly anxious that the loss of the EPIC number could create more problems since they present EPIC as a document to obtain the Aadhaar card and passport.

The BBMP has revealed that over 6.69 lakh voters had been knocked out of the electoral rolls as on November 2022 for various reasons, including they being deceased or possessing duplicate IDs.

Some political leaders have accused electoral officers of arbitrarily deleting names without taking the concerned voter’s consent.

Photo-similar entries

Nazma (name changed) discovered that her name was missing from the electoral roll when she visited the BBMP office in Byrasandra of the Chickpet Assembly constituency. The 44-year-old had to visit the office five times before finding out that her name was dropped due to photo-similar entries.

“There were two records under my name and photo, but the EPIC number and addresses were different. I do not know how two records have been created,” she said.

The BBMP, she said, has deleted the voter ID that has the correct EPIC number and wrong address without consulting her. “How can the electoral roll be changed arbitrarily? Why should I suffer for the duplication of my records without my knowledge,” she questioned.

A senior BBMP official said it could be a stray case. “We undertook an extensive table-top exercise to review whether there were any erroneous deletions,” he said.

“The exercise was followed by field inspections to collect feedback from all voters whose names were deleted. If a voter finds his or her name missing, there is a provision to apply for a fresh voter ID even now. One can apply until 10 days prior to the last date of submission of nomination by candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls,” the official added.

Nazma, however, is worried that applying for a fresh voter ID would cause more trouble. “I have submitted my voter ID with the original EPIC number for obtaining various documents, including passport and Aadhaar card. Will they be invalid after losing my original EPIC number,” she wanted to know.

In response to Nazma’s claims, the BBMP officer stated that there is a provision to appeal against the errant deletion by the Electoral Officer (ERO) to the district electoral officer (DEO), who is also the BBMP commissioner, with proper evidence.

“Suo moto action is not allowed for poll-going states,” Ujwal Gosh, Special Commissioner (Elections) at BBMP, told DH.

Another officer said documents like Aadhaar and passport will continue to be valid since they are only “address proof” and not “identity proof.”

Karnataka’s Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Meena did not respond to calls.