The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Gujarat announced on Monday that the verification process for discrepancies in the state's electoral rolls is on the verge of completion. This comes just before the scheduled publication of the draft electoral rolls on December 19, which are being prepared as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
Massive Verification Drive Nears Finish Line
In an official statement, the CEO's office revealed that a staggering 10.69 lakh discrepancies were initially identified from the 5.08 crore enumeration forms distributed across the state. These discrepancies pertained to the ASD list, which covers voters classified as Absent, Shifted, or Deceased. Remarkably, the verification process has progressed to a point where only 11 cases remain unresolved.
The office further detailed that 26 districts in Gujarat have now successfully cleared all discrepancies, achieving a zero-pending status. The remaining 11 pending cases are collectively spread across the other seven districts of the state.
Collaborative Efforts Ensure High Success Rate
The SIR exercise commenced on October 27, and the CEO's office highlighted the efficient execution of both the distribution and digitisation of the enumeration forms. A key to this success was the organization of meetings between Booth-Level Officers (BLOs) and Booth-Level Agents (BLAs) representing various political parties.
"During this period, meetings were organised between booth-level officers (BLOs) and booth-level agents (BLAs) of political parties to verify forms not returned due to reasons such as death, permanent relocation or absence, achieving 100% success," the official statement noted.
Transparency in the Process
Following these collaborative meetings in all districts, lists of voters whose forms could not be returned were published publicly. These lists were made available on the websites of the respective District Election Officers as well as the Chief Electoral Officer's portal, arranged in a constituency-wise manner for easy access and transparency.
This meticulous verification drive underscores the election machinery's commitment to ensuring an accurate and updated voter list for Gujarat. With the draft publication date imminent, the near-completion of the ASD list scrutiny marks a significant milestone in the pre-election revision process.
