SIR process in 7 states, Election Commission gives voters another chance

The Election Commission of India has taken a major and relief-oriented decision regarding the ongoing Special Intensive Revision or SIR process in seven states of the country. On Friday, the Election Commission announced that it will provide another major opportunity to those voters in seven states whose names were previously excluded from the currently issued draft electoral rolls. This comes as a massive relief for all those voters who couldn't keep their names included in the voter list due to various reasons and had to face exclusion as a result of administrative procedures.

This decision by the Election Commission specifically covers those voters who were marked as absent, shifted, dead, and duplicate, commonly referred to as ASDD. Enumeration forms had been issued for all these voters, but those forms couldn't be retrieved due to different reasons. Because the forms weren't returned, their names were dropped from the draft voter list during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision or SIR campaign. Now, the Election Commission has ensured that all such individuals are granted another opportunity to get their names registered back into the list.

Basically, all these instructions and guidelines apply to seven major states and union territories in the country. These states include Delhi, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, and Nagaland. Clear directives have been issued by the Election Commission to the electoral officers and the concerned administrative machinery across all these regions. The commission has also asked the administrative officials of these states to establish a solid monitoring mechanism to thoroughly ensure that no eligible voter is deprived of the opportunity to be included in the final electoral roll. Along with this, officials have also been instructed to completely prevent any kind of duplicate registration during this entire procedure.

The Election Commission has also shared some clear points regarding this entire process and its associated rules. According to the commission, this special opportunity to get names added will only be available to those voters who were previously categorized under absent, shifted, dead, and duplicate or ASDD. Only those voters whose enumeration forms were issued but not returned, and due to which their names couldn't be included in the draft electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision or SIR, will be able to take advantage of this facility. Plus, the commission has placed special emphasis on the strict prevention of any duplicate nominations during this process.

In this context, the Election Commission has also issued a very crucial clarification. According to the rules of the commission, people who were never on the voter list to begin with won't receive any benefit from this new arrangement. It has been made clear by the Election Commission that this relief is exclusively meant for those voters who were already present in the list, but whose names were dropped during the SIR process, while this special opportunity won't apply to new people who want to join for the first time or those who were never a part of the voter list.

It's worth noting that earlier this month on the 3rd of November, the Election Commission had taken another major and historic decision. In that decision, the commission had clearly stated that if a voter's name isn't included in the SIR draft voter list, that person can fill out Form 6 to get their name added again. The Election Commission had also provided relief at that time stating that even if someone has been a continuous voter for the past 10 years, they still only need to fill out Form 6 to re-register their name. The commission also assured that filling out the form under this process won't be considered a false affidavit, nor will any legal case be filed against the concerned individual.

This latest step and the previous announcements by the Election Commission are considered a major stride toward making the electoral process in the country more transparent, accessible, and inclusive. This will bring immense relief to lakhs of voters who were on the verge of being deprived of exercising their voting rights due to inadvertent or procedural errors. It remains to be seen how swiftly and transparently the electoral officers of the concerned seven states implement this entire procedure so that the final voter list can be prepared in a completely error-free and fair manner.