Election Commission Breaks Its Promise; Lakhs to Lose Voting Rights

Thiruvananthapuram: The Election Commission has broken its promise to include names in the electoral roll by Monday, the last day for filing nominations. The Commission issued a press release on Sunday stating that applications submitted after March 15 will not be considered.

According to the notification, which allowed applications to be submitted until March 23, lakhs of people who submitted their applications at the last moment will not be able to vote. They will be included in the list only after the election. Deshabhimani earlier reported that a secret instruction had been issued at the official level on March 18 stating that these applications would not be considered.

A total of 24.50 lakh people were removed from the electoral roll under the name of SIR, while new voters were not included in a proportionate manner. Only 16 lakh people were newly added. The final supplementary list is scheduled to be published on March 24, but the new applications are not being considered. The Commission’s stance will adversely affect all those who have submitted Form 6A for non-residents and Form 8 for changing their residence.