Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday criticised the Election Commission over a report alleging that eligible voters in Goa were left out of the final electoral roll despite efforts by election officials to restore their names.
Reacting to a post by Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on X, Tharoor described the matter as “extremely serious” and alleged that it involved depriving Indian citizens of their constitutional rights as well as withholding access to essential humanitarian benefits.
The controversy centres on a report by the Indian Express concerning 97 voters in Goa who were reportedly found eligible for inclusion in the final electoral roll by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), but whose names were not restored before the roll was published. The report said Goa Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Goel wrote to the Election Commission eight times in seven days seeking a facility to reverse the deletions.
Deep Dive
What are the implications of leaving eligible voters out of the electoral roll in Goa?
Why did Shashi Tharoor criticize the Election Commission regarding the electoral roll deletions?
How has the process of filling Form 6 changed for first-time voters?
Tharoor said the reported exclusion had consequences beyond voting rights, referring to people who could be dependent on access to government-linked services.
{{/usCountry}}Tharoor said the reported exclusion had consequences beyond voting rights, referring to people who could be dependent on access to government-linked services.
{{/usCountry}}“This is extremely serious and involves depriving Indian citizens of their constitutional rights, as well as withholding essential humanitarian benefits, from dialysis treatments to transplants,” Tharoor said in his post.
He further criticised what he described as “political chicanery” and said that “inhumane conduct is unconscionable”. Tharoor also said the Election Commission owed an apology to the affected citizens and the country.
“Resignation is a minimal demand; rescinding this disastrous software and undoing the harm it has caused is now indispensable,” he added.
What is the row?
On Wednesday, investigative report from The Indian Express newspaper stated that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi recorded objections to decisions taken in the commission’s name at least 14 times over 10 months.
Four such objections were made on the same day, the report said. The IE report added that these disagreements involved changes to Form 6, centralisation of the ERONet system, voter deletion appeals and more.
Sandhu and Joshi also separately wrote to Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan regarding changes to the EC's IT work, the report noted. The commissioners were concerned that the changes could reduce oversight of the systems used to manage voter lists.
EC's clarification
In a clarification to the report, the Election Commission stated that all decisions it has taken were unanimous in nature.
“All decisions of the Election Commission of India, including SIR, have been unanimous and with the approval of both the Election Commissioners and the Chief Election Commissioner,” the statement to HT read.
“Differing views and observations are a normal part of deliberation in any institution. They are a part of the decision-making process before a final decision is taken. Not only the three commissioners, but every officer of the commission is fully authorized to give his suggestions to the commission for improving the electoral system,” said a press note from the poll body.