Telangana Chief Electoral Officer C Sudharsan Reddy has directed election officials to take action against those who knowingly submit false declarations in electoral-roll forms, amid allegations of bulk, non-genuine Form 7 applications during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
The CEO has also issued detailed instructions for disposing of SIR notices. Physical hearings should be held only in exceptional cases, while an adult family member may represent the elector when authorised. Reddy instructed Collectors, District Election Officers and Electoral Registration Officers to first conduct a proper inquiry before initiating action under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, read with Rule 20 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. The directive follows allegations of pre-printed Form 7 applications being used to seek deletion of eligible voters in parts of Hyderabad.
Booth Level Officers have been told to visit voters at home, collect supporting documents and upload them on the ECI system for a decision by the ERO/AERO.
Telangana Congress spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin alleged that pre-printed forms were prepared using electoral-roll data and demanded that the Election Commission seize such applications, examine download logs and identify those behind their preparation and distribution. If this drama does not stop, protests bigger than those at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar will take place on the roads and streets of Hyderabad. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, who is also MP from Hyderabad, has said, “If false Form 7 are being filed, we appeal to the Election Commission to take action against those responsible. With the claims and objections process nearing its deadline, the Election Commission has stressed that no voter should be deleted merely on the basis of an unverified Form 7 objection.
