Political outfits prepare for SIR exercise in Delhi

Political parties in Delhi are preparing for the upcoming SIR exercise starting June 30, appointing trained agents to assist with voter verification and enrollment.

New Delhi: From training booth level agents to strengthening of party at organisational level, political outfits in Delhi are fully prepared for the upcoming SIR exercise in the national capital.

Teachers on Census duty collect household data during the ongoing Census exercise in Karol Bagh on Saturday (Hindustan Times)

The SIR will begin from June 30 across the city with door to door visits by booth level officers (BLOs).

Delhi BJP leader Sanket Gupta, who is incharge of the SIR process for the party, said the party had already appointed booth level agents-2 (BLAs-2) for over 12,600 polling booths across Delhi. BLAs-2 are appointed by recognised political parties to help BLOs verify voter details, identify duplicate or shifted voters, and assist people with enrolment, deletion, correction, or transfer of voter records through prescribed forms.

“These agents will assist people in filling enumeration forms. The agents were provided training on how to help voters in searching for their names in the voter list of 2002 and filling forms by the election authorities as well as by the party. Now that the dates are officially announced, these agents will undergo refresher training and will be made to fill dummy forms for practice,” he added.

Former Congress MLA Anil Bhardwaj has been appointed as the general secretary (organisation), Delhi.

“Following leanings from other states where the exercise has been carried out, the party has appointed me as the general secretary (organisation) in Delhi. I am the first to hold the post. We have appointed BLAs-2 for booths and BLAs-1,” he added. BLAs-1 are appointed at the assembly constituency level or district level and they oversee the work of BLAs-2 and act as a coordination link between the political parties and the election authorities.

The Congress leader said district presidents will be provided training during a camp being held at near Pushkar from May 23. Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, is also likely to attend the camp, he said

“The BLAs-2 will ensure that no eligible voter is deleted from the rolls. Out of a total of 13,068 booths, BLA-2 appointments have been completed in 13,009 booths. BLA-1 appointments have been made in 67 out of the 70 Assembly constituencies. District Presidents have been appointed in 14 districts,” he added.

An AAP functionary said that the party has also appointed BLAs-2 for polling booths and training has been completed for them. The party has also completed mapping of voters, he added.

In the lead-up to SIR, regular meetings will also be conducted by the election authorities with the recognised political parties seeking their cooperation for successful completion of the exercise. The first such meeting is scheduled this week to inform them of the important points of law and procedures of the SIR and seek their cooperation, officials said.