Photo voters slips not ID for voting: EC

The photo voter slips issued to the electors by booth level officers (BLOs) will not be accepted as valid identification documents for voting in the elections with the Election Commission of India (ECI) deciding to end the practice from the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.

According to the poll panel's directive to the chief electoral officers (CEOs) of all states on Thursday, the voters will have to produce their elector's photo identity card (EPIC), issued by the election commission, for their identification at the polling station before they cast their votes.

The ECI has decided not to accept photo voter slips as "a standalone" identification document for voting in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls as well as general elections and by-elections to the state legislative assemblies "to be held simultaneously," citing various grounds and suggestions that these slips may be "misused" as they are printed after the finalisation of the electoral roll and distributed just close to the poll through BLOs.

"The design of the photo voter slip does not incorporate any security feature. In fact, photo voter slip was started as an alternative document as the coverage of EPIC was not complete," it said.

Since more than 99% electors possess EPIC and more than 99% adults have also been issued Aadhaar cards, photo voter slips are no more required for identification, the ECI added.

The poll panel, however, said the photo voter slips will continue to be prepared and issued to the electors as part of the "awareness building exercise" with a disclaimer printed on each of these slips in bold letters that it will not be accepted as identification document.

For the electors who cannot produce their EPIC, the ECI listed a total of 11 photo identity documents as alternative identification proof, instructing the CEOs to ensure that any of these photo documents is accepted by the authorities.

Passport, driving license, PAN card, passbooks with photograph issued by bank/post office, smart card issued by the Registrar General of India (RGI) under the national population register (NPR) pension document with photograph or Aadhaar card can be accepted as alternative document for identification of the electors "who are not able to produce the EPIC", the poll penal said.

Service identity cards with photographs issued to the employees of the central government, state governments, public sector units and public limited companies; job cards issued under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA); and health insurance smart cards issued under a scheme of the labour ministry will also be valid alternative documents for identification.

The ECI, which is likely to announce poll schedules in a week, directed the CEOs to "ignore" minor discrepancies in the entries made in the electors EPIC, like "clerical errors, spelling mistakes etc provided the identity of the electors can be established by the EPIC".

"If an elector produces an EPIC which has been issued by the electoral registration officer of another Assembly constituency, such card shall also be accepted for identification provided the name of that elector finds place in the electoral roll pertaining to the polling station where the elector has turned up for voting," the ECI made it clear to all CEOs.

If it is not possible to establish the identity of an elector on account of any "mismatch of photograph etc such an elector shall have to produce one of the 11 alternative photo documents," it said.

The overseas electors will have to produce their "original passport only" for identification, the ECI said.