New Delhi, August 6: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has lodged serious objections with the Election Commission regarding the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in Delhi. On Thursday, a party delegation led by Delhi state president Saurabh Bhardwaj met with the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Delhi, alleging that many genuine voters are at risk of being labeled as ‘shifted’ and removed from the voter list.
The delegation included other leaders such as MLA Sanjeev Jha and Kuldeep Kumar. After the meeting, Saurabh Bhardwaj stated that feedback from the party’s booth-level agents (BLAs) and local residents indicated that a significant number of people in unauthorized colonies, villages, and slum areas have not received enumeration forms. He claimed that while records show 100% distribution of forms in several areas, the actual situation on the ground is vastly different. He alleged that approximately 60% of individuals have been categorized as ‘shifted’ without proper verification.
Bhardwaj urged the Election Commission to share the names, addresses, and mobile numbers of those labeled as shifted with all political parties’ BLAs. He argued that political parties could directly contact these individuals to verify whether they have indeed moved or still reside at their original locations.
He noted that many people from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, and Haryana live in rented accommodations in Delhi and frequently change homes within the same area. Such individuals should not be removed from the voter list solely based on their change of residence. He also raised concerns about nearly one million voters whose names were removed from the list during the previous process before the SIR. If these individuals have not received enumeration forms, what will happen to their voting rights?
Bhardwaj suggested that the Election Commission could at least send SMS notifications to these voters. He mentioned that the Commission deemed this practically difficult.
Burdwan MLA Sanjeev Jha emphasized that if a voter is mistakenly marked as shifted and can present proof of identity and residence, there should be a mechanism to reinstate them in the SIR process. He reported that the Election Commission has shown a positive attitude towards considering such cases.
He also stated that individuals moving from one house to another within the same colony should not be removed from the voter list.
Meanwhile, Kondli MLA Kuldeep Kumar alleged that many Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have recorded inaccurate information regarding form distribution. He pointed out that nomadic communities, Scheduled Caste individuals, and families that frequently relocate have also not received enumeration forms. He stressed that it is the Election Commission’s responsibility to ensure that every eligible citizen’s name is included in the voter list and that no qualified person is deprived of their voting rights.
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