AICC wants verification of voters' list in State

Congress on Thursday claimed that it had found 11.59 lakh duplicate voter entries in the electoral rolls in 28 constituencies in Karnataka and demanded a review by the Election Commission before the Lok Sabha elections expected in April-May.

All India Congress Committee Secretary K C Mittal said Congress functionaries had analysed voters’ lists for 28 Assembly constituencies in Bangalore City and found “several anomalies” indicating significant number of duplicate voters. In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner V S Sampath, Mittal said such irregularities would affect the conduct of free and fair elections.

“We have been able to demonstrate the serious irregularities in the electoral rolls of New Delhi, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh. But, similar irregularities and complaints have also been informed (sic) from other states and union territories,” Mittal said in the letter to the Chief Election Commissioner.

He demanded that it was necessary for the Election Commission to conduct an extensive verification of electoral rolls all over the country and to delete such names which appear in more than one constituency.

Since it was not possible to conduct such an exercise at the booth level, the Congress wanted the poll authority to constitute special teams to conduct verification and survey of electoral rolls to remove all discrepancies and anomalies. “This will enable the Commission to prepare a proper and genuine electoral roll for each constituency for the ensuing general elections in 2014,” he said.

The Representation of Peoples’ Act prohibits registration of a person at more than one constituency. A person has to be a resident of the constituency where he is registered as a voter.