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Over 3.64 million SIR notices issued in Karnataka yet to reach voters
CEO V Anbukumar’s office said on Friday that 43,81,141 notices were generated for voters classified under the “no mapping” and “anomalies” categories.
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Over 3.649 million notices issued under the ongoing special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Karnataka are yet to reach voters, data from the chief electoral officer (CEO) indicated. Officials said they were rechecking enumeration data to resolve discrepancies before more people were called for hearings.
CEO V Anbukumar’s office said on Friday that 43,81,141 notices were generated for voters classified under the “no mapping” and “anomalies” categories. Of these, 7,31,770 were delivered, leaving 36,49,371 pending distribution.
The notices are being issued to voters whose details could not be mapped or were found to contain logical discrepancies. Those receiving them are required to establish their Indian citizenship to continue on the rolls.
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Election officials recheck enumeration forms
The scale of the exercise has also led officials to re-examine enumeration forms before serving further notices. Officials said some apparent discrepancies could be resolved by examining how information about family members had been entered and mapped.
An election official said the department was going back over the enumeration forms to correct cases that may have been wrongly flagged. Family details are being reassessed individually, including households with over five children, where children may have been linked to both parents for verification. In cases involving twins of the same age, officials may assign them to different parents in the records or seek birth certificates to establish the details, the official said.
According to the CEO’s office, 43,81,335 electors have been identified under the anomaly or logical discrepancy category and 23,45,500 under the unmapped category.
Addressing claims and objections
Hearings for voters who receive notices began on September 3 and will continue until October 12 before Electoral Registration Officers and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers. “A total of 206 hearings had been completed by Friday,” the CEO’s office said.
The election machinery has 224 EROs and 4,262 AEROs operating at the notice stage, with additional AEROs also deployed.
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At the request of registered and recognised political parties, the CEO’s office will provide, before September 6, lists of people who have received notices under the no mapping and anomalies categories.
The state had 4,46,38,124 voters on its electoral roll as of September 4. The roll comprised about 2.21 crore men, 2.24 crore women and 2,871 transgender voters.
The Election Commission has scheduled the second special voter registration drive for September 19 and 20. The CEO’s office has also asked district officials to conduct voter education and electoral participation programmes and organise special campaigns.
The CEO held a video conference with District Election Officers and officials from various departments on September 3 to review voter registration work.
