E-Paper
Haryana speaker alleges nearly 40k dual voters still figure in Panchkula electoral list
Haryana assembly speaker raises concerns over 40,000 bogus votes in Panchkula, urges Election Commission to revise voters' list before upcoming elections.
As Haryana gears up for the Vidhan Sabha elections due in October this year, assembly speaker Gian Chand Gupta raked up the issue of bogus votes, stating that many who have died or shifted out of the constituency continue to figure in the electoral list.
“There are about 40,000 bogus/dual voters in Panchkula alone,” said Gupta, who is the MLA from Panchkula, while talking to the mediapersons in Chandigarh on Saturday.
“I have written to the Election Commission of India, pointing out the anomalies in the voters’ list,” he said while stating that the Election Commission, through a special drive, should revise the voters’ list. “Holding election on the present voters’ list will not be fair,” the speaker said.
He said on Monday, he will be meeting the Haryana election commissioner.
This is not the first time that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken up the issue of bogus votes. In May this year, soon after voting for Parliamentary elections concluded, former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar had accused the Congress of indulging in bogus voting at a few places in the state.
As part of its strategy to reach out to each voter, BJP is carrying out a door-to-door survey in Panchkula. “In the door-to-door survey, which is underway, 3,906 bogus votes have been detected from just 23 booths. There are 230 booths in Panchkula, so approximately, there are 40,000 bogus votes in Panchkula alone,” said Gupta.
He added that out of these 3,906 voters, 400 people have already dead while 3,517 have shifted out of the constituency.
‘Bogus votes would affect assembly election outcome’
“My apprehension is that bogus votes would be there in each assembly. These bogus votes will affect the assembly elections results,” added Gupta.
Despite repeated calls and messages, Panchkula deputy commissioner Yash Garg, who is also the district election officer, was not available for comments.
