As many as 15,663 forms were filed in bulk to delete voters from the electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Gujarat’s Somnath assembly constituency in January, a majority of whom were Muslims, Newslaundry reported on February 11.
Election Commission of India’s data shows that 2.6 lakh people are part of the electorate in the assembly constituency, which saw a close battle in the 2022 polls where Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Mansingh Parmar was defeated by Congress’ Vimalbhai Chudasma by 922 votes. Among the 2.6 lakh voters, Congress party workers said Muslims account for at least 50,000 voters.
Among the 15,663 Form 7 applications, most were already filed by only 269 people who submitted them.
According to News On Air, the ECI had clarified that Form 7s, used for requesting voter deletion, can be filed multiple times by one individual. However, to prevent misuse, the electoral registration officer will be flagged for a mandatory review if a person files more than five objections.
Objector’s names handwritten on form 7s
The Form 7s accessed by Newslaundry show that details of the voter are printed in English, while the objector’s name and other details are handwritten.
In one form, the objector’s name, Vishavadiya Bharatbhai Narsibha, and his electoral photo identity card (EPIC) no and mobile number are handwritten in Gujarati. In contrast, the voter’s details with the name Nasimben Chauhan are printed in English.
Additionally, all the 269 objectors submitted more than 50 Form 7 applications, despite the manual restriction placed by the Election Commission on receiving bulk form applications. A booth-level agent (BLA) is also limited to filing up to 10 Form 7s per day. However, it is not verified whether all the forms were submitted on the same day.
6 objectors claim fraudulent use of their name, numbers, EPICs
Some objectors were traced back to the BJP, including Somnath BJP women’s wing president, Manjulaben Sujani, and 29 other party councillors from the Veraval and Patan towns.
Out of the 269 objectors, six denied filling out the forms, and have since filed affidavits claiming that their names, EPICs and phone numbers were wrongfully used.
The reasons used for the removal of some voters were “absent” and “permanently shifted” – valid reasons to file a Form 7. However, a few forms listed “not an Indian citizen” as grounds for objections.
Such bulk applications require personal verification by the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs). Somnath District Collector and District Electoral Officer (DEO) VN Upadhyay told Newslaundry that six AEROs had been deployed because the verification process was challenging. He assured that no voter’s name would be removed randomly.
Among those who claimed misuse of their identities, Dharmandra Amrutlal Kotecha said, “I don’t know who has used my personal details to fill out the form. I don’t know anything about it.” He added that he has filed an affidavit with the district administration.
Gujarat is one of 12 states and Union Territories where the SIR exercise has been carried out. In the first draft electoral roll published on December 19, about 73.73 lakh names were removed, reducing the total number of voters from 5.08 crore to 4.34 crore.
Applications to add or delete names were accepted until January 30. On January 28, election authorities said they had received 9.88 lakh Form 7 applications. However, two days later, the Gujarat Chief Electoral Officer’s office revised the number of Form 7 applications to 1.8 lakh.
The final voter list is scheduled to be published on February 17.
Voters unaware of request to delete their names
In one case, an objection was filed against Ibrahim Radiya’s name by Naval Jentibhai Bharvala, citing that the voter was “absent” and “not an Indian citizen.” However, when contacted, Bharvala said he was unaware of the submission, even though more than 50 forms had been filed in his name.
Copies of Form 7s were initially not shared with other parties, but after learning about the bulk forms, Congress MLA Chudasama wrote to the ERO on January 28. He asked for photocopies of all Form 7 applications and closed circuit television (CCTV) footage to identify the objectors.
The District ERO, Upadhyay, said anyone can file the objections, as it is their right, but the EROs process each one of them. “If we receive lakhs of applications, we have to process them, and not blindly accept and remove the names of voters,” he said.
When asked how officials would verify citizenship, DEO Upadhyay said they would rely on the 13 identity documents prescribed by the ECI for the SIR process. He added that the ECI had informed the Supreme Court last month, while hearing petitions related to the Bihar SIR, that the exercise is meant to verify citizenship and not determine it.
Most of these applications, according to the report, are meant to disenfranchise Muslim voters in the towns and villages.
Residents of Govindpara have written to their respective Booth Level Officers (BLO), urging them to retain the names of Muslim voters against whom Form 7 objections were filed.
In letters dated February 5, village elders stated that the voters are genuine and that the objections should be rejected. At least 2,000 Form 7 applications have been submitted from five booths in Govindpara. A BLO from one of these booths confirmed the contents of the letters, which listed all the voters whose names had been challenged.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a BLO said he received a list of 30 Muslim names in his booth. “I have checked them and all of them were present. No names will be deleted,” he said.
With seven days remaining before the final voter list is published, several BLOs have yet to receive the Form 7 objections from the ERO’s office, with at least four BLOs confirming this.
Cases should be filed if identities misused: ECI source
False declarations are a crime under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, with a fine and prison time of one year. An ECI source told Newslaundry that cases must be filed if fraudulent use of names was reported. The electoral officers are reportedly verifying the fraud objectors, DEO Somnath confirmed.
Earlier rules were stricter; an individual could submit only one Form 7, according to former Chief Election Commissioner OP Rawat. Although the 2023 guidelines eased norms for BLAs, several people named as objectors have said they were not political agents and denied filing the forms.
The Election Commission’s 2023 manual limits bulk submission of Form 7 applications. BLAs of political parties can file only 10 applications a day, and if more than 30 are submitted during the revision period, the ERO and AERO are required to personally verify each one to prevent “organised” or mass filings from political parties.
Bulk applications are otherwise allowed for individuals making changes on behalf of family members.
