Verification of voters list suffers delays

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, JAN. 9. The State Election Department was today on the defensive as its much- hyped exercise of `100 per cent verification' of voters list in 42 of the 234 Assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu, has been facing staff problems, leading to `time over-runs and adhocism'.

The cent per cent door-to-door verification had been ordered by the Election Commission as the number of claims received in those places for inclusion in the electoral rolls had exceeded 10 per cent. Though initially scheduled for only three days in various districts and in the city from last Saturday to Monday, it is now learnt that wherever necessary verification of the voters list had been allowed to go on for another three days, till Friday.

In many places, the department had to rely on school teachers for doing the job, even as in quite a few large constituencies like Villivakkam and Tambaram in suburban Chennai the exercise started only on Sunday, sources pointed out.

During the verification, the corrections were being carried out in the draft rolls, sources said. And all those names which will have to be deleted from the rolls, will be first published at the local zonal/taluk offices with notices being sent to the individuals simultaneously.

If people who had changed addresses within the same constituencies produced the relevant papers, their names would be retained in the rolls, the sources said and urged the cooperation of the people in completing this exercise in a week's time. Stating that no `compliance reports' regarding the verification had come from any of the districts so far, sources said a clear picture on the extent of verification will be known only after the 'Pongal' festival. ``But we are serious about the job'', they added.

The supplementary rolls, following the recent electoral revision, will be published after the Election Commission cleared the same for all the Assembly segments, sources said. Till last night, the Commission's nod has come for 102 constituencies.

With one of the Joint Chief Electoral Officers in the State having been granted a long leave on personal grounds, sources expressed the hope that the Government would ensure that the next incumbent to the post will be well versed in Tamil to enable tackling locally sensitive issues in an election year.

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Section  : Southern States
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