CHENNAI: The ruling DMK on Wednesday submitted a memorandum to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Tamil Nadu, raising concerns over the handling of electors who have been marked as ‘No Mapping’ in the draft electoral rolls released following the enumeration phase of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision exercise.
In a statement on Monday, the CEO’s office had announced that 12.43 lakh electors who have been marked under the ‘No Mapping’ category are being issued notices for verification.
A key concern raised in the representation from DMK’s organising secretary R S Bharathi, submitted by the party’s legal wing secretary and MP N R Elango, is the electoral registration officers (EROs) and assistant electoral registration officers (AEROs) insisting on additional documents apart from Aadhaar for elector verification.
Insisting on extra docus against statutory rules, says Bharathi
In the memorandum, Bharathi said both SC and ECI have clarified that Aadhaar is a valid document for identity verification and officials only need to verify its genuineness. Insisting on extra documents, he said, was against statutory rules and could result in genuine voters being excluded. He appealed to the CEO to issue clear instructions to the EROs and AEROs to not insist on other documents and accept Aadhaar as sufficient proof of identity.
The DMK leader also sought permission for electors to be accompanied by representatives or legal counsel during inquiry proceedings. Citing provisions of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, Bharathi said electors are entitled to assistance during inquiries, especially in cases involving voters who are not lettered or those from vulnerable sections. Denial of assistance, he argued, violates both the spirit of the Rules and the right to vote.
Bharathi urged ECI to share booth-wise lists of electors issued notices under the ‘No Mapping’ category with recognised political parties. He said the absence of such data has made it difficult for booth level agents (BLAs) to guide affected voters through the process. Notably, although the claims and objections process began on December 19, the CEO’s office released the overall numbers on the people under ‘No Mapping’ category at the state and district levels only on Monday.
Flagging another issue, Bharathi said forms submitted by political parties through their BLAs were not being properly recorded under the parties’ names, creating confusion and tracking issues.
Finally, he called for uniformity in forms and procedures followed by district officials across the state, stating that inconsistencies were causing difficulties. He urged the ECI to intervene urgently to ensure that eligible voters are not disenfranchised due to procedural lapses.