New Delhi [India], August 17 : Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday said that the decision on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal and other states will be taken collectively by the three Election Commissioners.
"...The three Election Commissioners will decide when the exercise of SIR will be carried out in West Bengal or other states," he said while addressing a press conference in the national capital.
He further clarified the legal provisions available to citizens who wish to object to the inclusion of a voter's name, the CEC said such objections can be made before the electoral registration officer by taking an oath.
"If you are not an voter of that constituency, then you have only one option in the law and that is The Registration Of Electors Rules, rule number 20, sub-clause (3), sub-clause (b) which says that if you are not an voter of that constituency, then you can lodge your complaint as a witness and you will have to give an oath to the electoral registration officer and that oath will have to be administered in front of the person against whom you have complained..." Kumar stated.
Earlier in the day, CEC Kumar clarified that the machine-readable voter list is prohibited, citing a 2019 decision of the Election Commission following a Supreme Court judgment.
"The machine-readable voter list is prohibited. This decision of the Election Commission is after the judgment of the Supreme Court and is from 2019," he said.
"We have to understand the difference between a machine-readable voter list and a searchable voter list. You can search the voter list available on the Election Commission website by entering the EPIC number. You can also download it. This is not called machine-readable. Regarding machine-readable, in 2019, the Supreme Court also studied this subject in depth and found that giving a machine-readable electoral roll can violate the privacy of the voter," he added.
Meanwhile, CEC Kumar also assured that the officials of the Election Commission of India are working towards making Special Intensive Revision in Bihar a "huge success". He mentioned that the doors of the Election Commission are always open to everyone and the poll body is working together with everyone in a "transparent" manner.
This statement comes amid criticism of the Election Commission by opposition parties over the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls in the poll-bound state of Bihar.
"The truth is that step by step, all the stakeholders are committed, trying and working hard to make the SIR of Bihar a complete success. When more than seven crore voters of Bihar are standing with the Election Commission, then neither can any question mark be raised on the credibility of the Election Commission nor on the credibility of the voters," CEC said.