PANAJI
With the Opposition Congress leading the charge against alleged manipulation of electoral rolls nationally with its ‘Vote Chori’ campaign, the controversy around the sanctity of the electoral rolls and voter registration processes of the Election Commission has not escaped Goa.
The Congress in Goa claimed the four Nepali voters in Panaji have their names listed on the capital’s electoral rolls on a single address in St Inez. It claimed they don’t even reside there and has filed a formal letter of complaint before the Chief Electoral Officer at Altinho.
Allegations of fake or unauthorized voters with multiple EPIC numbers from different States continue to surface. The issue has also been raised by the Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP).
Election Commission rules meanwhile, permit migrants to register themselves in their new State of residence to which they have shifted either for employment, studies or other reasons, provided they have a minimum six months of residence in the new State.
However, the onus to cancel the registration in their Home State is on the voter who could be hauled up for failing to do so with criminal prosecution.
According to the ECI website, all that a person who migrates to another State needs to do to register as a voter there is fill a ‘form 8’ and support the application with documents such as a water bill, electricity bill or gas connection documents for the address you reside in the State you have migrated to.
