A poster issued by the Election Commission has said a decision on verification can also be taken on the basis of local investigation if the mandatory documents are not submitted.
In a major decision following scathing criticism by opposition parties, the Election Commission has said voters can get verified in the electoral rolls as part of the Special Intensive Revision in Bihar even without submitting the mandatory documents. If the documents are not given, the Electoral Registrar Officer will carry out verification based on investigation at the local level.
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR), which is being carried out months ahead of the Assembly elections in Bihar, has been criticised by the opposition, which has said crores of voters risk being left out and even termed the exercise a "conspiracy" to ensure the BJP wins. One of the key sticking points for the opposition is the fact that the Election Commission (EC) made submitting at least one of 11 documents a must for verification.
The documents being accepted include birth certificates, passports, identity cards or pension payment orders issued to government employees or pensioners, permanent residence certificates, forest right certificates, caste certificates, family register prepared by state and local authorities, and land or house allotment certificates issued by the government. Aadhaar is not part of the list.
Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav had told NDTV earlier this week that, according to the Government of India, only two to three per cent of people have these documents. "This is clearly a conspiracy to remove crores of people from the voter list... The Constitution has given everyone the right to vote," he had said.
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