NEW DELHI: Between December 16 and January 6, the Chief Electoral Office (CEO) of Delhi received an "unprecedented" 5.1 lakh applications for new voter registration, of which nearly 3.4 lakh—two-thirds—were filed by women, poll officials told this newspaper.
This indicates a direct correlation between the sudden surge in new voter registrations and the populist cash schemes for women promised by political parties.
A senior official confirmed that, in certain assembly constituencies, female applicants for new voter registrations accounted for over 70 percent. “In West Delhi, we observed a sharp surge in new voter registrations, with women comprising more than 70% of the applicants in several assemblies,” the official stated.
TNIE earlier reported that the surge in voter applications has been attributed to the announcement of direct cash schemes by political parties ahead of the upcoming assembly polls. This volume, typically seen over a year, has been logged in just three weeks, and the timing coincided with the announcement of DBT schemes.
Officials suspected the use of forged documents to secure benefits and emphasized the need for 100% field verification to identify eligible applicants. They assured that stringent action would be taken against individuals submitting fraudulent documents for voter registration.
The surge follows the announcement of the Aam Aadmi Party’s Mukhya Mantri Mahila Samman Yojna, which promises Rs 2,100 monthly financial assistance to women. Congress quickly followed suit with its Pyari Didi Yojana, offering Rs 2,500 monthly to women if the party wins.
The Bharatiya Janata Party is also expected to unveil a similar DBT scheme soon.
“When the final electoral roll has 46 percent women voters and the new applicants show that over 65 percent applied in just a few days, coinciding with the announcement of women-centric schemes, it leaves very little room for doubts,” another official commented.
Officials said that scrutiny of the applications has begun, and many forms are being rejected where the poll body found duplication. “Currently, we are rejecting applications if we find that applicants are registered voters elsewhere,” the senior poll official commented.