Voter deletion: ECI rolls out feature that can curb fraud

LEADER of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s sustained campaign against ‘vote chori’ seems to have prompted the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take remedial action. The ECI’s new ‘e-sign’ feature on its portal and app requires those seeking to register as voters or applying for deletion and corrections to verify their identity using their Aadhaar-linked phone numbers. It was just a week ago that Rahul had pointed out alleged misuse of online voter deletion forms in Karnataka’s Aland constituency ahead of the 2023 Assembly polls. In response, the ECI claimed that no voter’s name could be struck off without giving him or her a hearing.

The verification feature is expected to significantly reduce the possibility of what happened in Aland, where only 24 applications for deletion out of over 6,000 were found to be genuine after an inspection. This malpractice, however, is not confined to a constituency in Karnataka, according to the Congress and other Opposition parties. They have alleged that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar is aimed at disenfranchising lakhs of voters, and this electoral ‘fraud’ could be perpetrated in other states as well.

Fair and transparent elections are the bedrock of a healthy democracy. With its impartiality being persistently questioned by the Opposition, the poll panel should tackle all kinds of allegations with hard evidence and an open mind. Improving the safeguards at every stage can help in reassuring key stakeholders such as political parties and the electorate. Even as Rahul’s “hydrogen bomb” is keenly awaited, the Congress and its allies must remember that their credibility hinges on presenting irrefutable proof of electoral irregularities. They must be on a firm footing every time while taking on a premier constitutional authority like the ECI.