Election Commission of India flags over 4.8 lakh entries with similarities on Chennai’s electoral rolls

EC flags 4.8L names in Chennai for verification. GCC to explore ways to delete entries after verification by booth-level officers. 2.4L entries may be deleted if duplicate entries confirmed. Fewer workers for field-level verification due to vacancies in govt. jobs. 49% of residents in rental accommodations. 38.68L registered voters in 16 Assembly constituencies. 89L residents in 15 zones, many without names on electoral rolls.

Over 4.8 lakh names on Chennai’s electoral rolls are under the scanner after the Election Commission of India (EC) sent a list of entries that have similarities.

A meeting of officials of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) was held recently to explore ways to delete the names after verification by booth-level officers. In the event of confirmation of duplicate entries, a maximum of 2.4 lakh electors’ names may be deleted. Officials at the District Election Office said the EC had flagged around 2.4 lakh entries that had similar photographs on the electoral rolls. Similarly, around 2.4 lakh entries have similarity in demographic aspects, such as name, age, gender, and name of relatives. Once booth-level officers complete the verification exercise, electoral registration officers will take a decision to delete entries from the rolls.

However, GCC officials said the number of booth-level officers was inadequate because of rising vacancies in government jobs, leading to poor verification at the field level. “Most of the teachers are unwilling to work as booth-level officers. The number of GCC employees has reduced from 40,000 in 1988 to 5,000 in 2023. The number of GCC employees is expected to further reduce to 2,500. So, we have fewer workers for field level verification of the electors,” said an official.

T.V. Shemmozhi, councillor of ward 104, said a large number of electors in areas, such as Anna Nagar, had been moving to new residences at frequent intervals. According to estimates, 49% of residents in the city are in rental accommodations. “In ward 104, the polling was 28% in the last local body election. Many residents of such areas are senior citizens. Most of their family members live abroad. Owing to technical errors caused by data entry operators, many electors’ name, address, and demographic data are wrong,” he said.

The District Election Office in GCC limits has already deleted many names from the rolls in the past few years. According to the draft electoral rolls released recently, the 16 Assembly constituencies of Chennai have 38.68 lakh registered voters. The number of electors on the rolls in GCC limits used to be more than 40 lakh a few years ago. The number of electors on the rolls is expected to reduce further in the next few months, ahead of the Parliamentary election. According to estimates, the city has 89 lakh residents in the 426 sq.km of the 15 zones, and many of the residents do not have their names on the electoral rolls.