REAL SWARAJ WILL COME NOT BY ACQUISITION OF POWER BY A FEW BUT ACQUISITION OF CAPACITY BY ALL TO RESIST AUTHORITY WHEN

ABUSED -MAHATMA GANDHI

PREPARATION/ REVISION/MANAGEMENT OF ELECTORAL ROLL

Election Commission of India Deputy Election Commissioners Chief Electoral Officer

Administrative Machinery for Electoral Roll Management

Roll Observers
Appellate Officers District Election Officer Electoral Registration Officer Assistant Electoral Registration Officer Designated Officers Staff on deputation to ECI

Supervisors

Booth Level Officer

Constitutional n Legal Provisions

Article 324(1)- ECI- supervise, direct, control Article 325- one general roll for every TC n no discrimination on certain grounds Article 326- right to franchise-18 years on qualifying date Article 327-Parliament authorized on all matters of roll- RPA 1950 Sec 28 of RPA- GOI- RER 1960 ECI directions from time to time

Why to Register?
RP Act 1951 allows only those to vote whose names are in the current electoral rolls of the constituency. The fairness of an election is directly related to correctness of the electoral roll. The representative form of government requires inclusiveness of all eligible persons as electors.

Guiding Principles of Voter Registration

Only one general electoral roll for every constituency. No provision for separate electorate on the ground of caste, creed, sex or religion. No person can be registered more than 1 place in the same constituency or in more than 1 constituencies.

Who can be Registered ?

Every person can be registered in an Electoral Roll of the Constituency who is a citizen of India not less than 18 years of age on the qualifying date is ordinarily resident in the Constituency

Who is Ordinarily Resident ? No definition is given under RP Act,1950, however a person is considered ordinarily resident if: s/he uses that place for sleeping her/his temporary absence from that place due to employment or pleasure does not disqualify from being considered s/he possesses the ability and intention to return to that place

Exceptions to General Principles of Ordinary Residence

Members of Parliament and State Legislatures can be registered in their home Constituencies even if that is not their normal place of residence Inmates of jails and other legal custody, hospitals, beggar homes etc. are not included in the Electoral Roll of that Constituency

Eligible students living in hostel or mess can either be registered as ordinarily resident in the place where hostel or mess is located or at their residence with their parents.

Exceptions to General Principles of Ordinary Residence

Service voters i.e. members of armed forces can be registered at their native place. Native place could be same or different from place of posting (Detailed discussions in later slides). Persons holding declared offices i.e. President, Ministers etc. (see paragraph 10 chapter 3 of Handbook of EROs) can be registered in the Constituency where they would be ordinarily resident were they not holding the said office, if they have given statement in Form 1 of RER, 1960

Proof of Ordinary Residence (Either of the documents can be given)

- Bank/Kisan/Post office current passbook

- Applicant's Ration card/ Passport/ Driving License/ Income Tax Assessment Order
- Latest Water/Telephone/Electricity/Gas connection Bill for that address, either in the name of the applicant or that of his/her immediate relation - Postal Departments posts received/ delivered in the applicant's name at the given address

10

Documentary proof of residence

Documentary proof of residence may not be insisted if it is not available specially in case of homeless persons, tenants who have disputes with landlords, sex workers etc. In such cases the BLO or some other officers can verify by visiting the place of residence mentioned in the application form that the applicant actually lives there

Important Documents Needed for forms

Age Proof (Either of the documents can be given)

- Birth certificate issued by Municipal Authority or District Office - School Leaving Certificate - Copy of mark sheet of class 10 if passed class 10 or more - Copy of marksheet of class 8 with date of birth - Copy of mark sheet of class 5 with date of birth - Parents declaration of the age of the child not educated - Certificate by Primary Health Centres (PHC) - For voters above 25 years, Gram Panchayat can certify age

Proof of Citizenship (Either of the documents can be given)

- Copy of EPIC of parents - Birth Certificate issued by Municipal authority - Passport

12

Documentary Proof of Age

No documentary proof of age is required if the age is obviously more that the age of eligibility. Documentary proof may be asked for only when age is borderline and can not be assessed by visual inspection of the applicant Certificate or mark-sheet of class 12, 10, 8 or 5; certificate of a sarpanch, councillor, ward member etc. are accepted as age proof

Important Documents Needed for forms For Married Women applying for the first time

Along with form no. 6

- Age

Proof

- Nationality Proof (Copy of EPIC of parents) - Proof of ordinary residence before marriage and after marriage

- Copy of proof of marriage (Marriage Registration Certificate)

- Linkage of spouse (if he is an elector of concerned part)

Married Woman with no proof of marriage

- it

is a special case and thus E.R.O. will have to be convinced of the marriage

- BLOs will have to conduct the local inquiry to ascertain the marriage
14

Very Important Points

What is Linkage
- linkage is the relationship of the applicant with one or more enrolled

electors - applicants name is integrated with his or her family

If linkage is not possible

- Electors can enroll on the basis of the following proofs

(i) Citizenship (ii) Age (iii) Ordinary residence

15

Disqualification for Registration in an Electoral Roll

Under Section 16 of RPA 1950, a person is disqualified for registration if: Not a citizen of India Of unsound mind, only if declared so by the competent court Temporarily disqualified from voting under any law relating to corrupt practices and other electoral offence If already registered, name is struck off the roll, if disqualification removed under any law, name is reinserted

A person is disqualified for voting at any election if:

Convicted an offence punishable under Section 171E or 171F of IPC or Section 135/136(2) (a) of RPA, 1951 for 6 years Disqualified by a decision of the President under Section 8(A) of RPA, 1951 for the period specified by the President. Person can only be registered only once in an Electoral Roll of only one Constituency under Section 17 & 18 of RPA, 1950 (name can be registered only at one place, but it can be transposed from one place to another)

Types of Revision
Intensive Summary Partly Intensive, partly Summary Special Continuous Updation

General Introduction to Roll Revision

Roll Revision For free and fair election different types of Roll revisions are very important prerequisite
ERO Role towards Roll revision process: To conduct the Roll Revision process as per Law and direction of ECI. ERO has to
notify the Roll revision program in Form 5 (appended in RER, 1960) publicize widely through advertisements, CEO's website etc. provide minimum 15 and maximum 30 days for filing claims and objections (under rule 12 RER, 1960)

not accept any application after the last date/specified time period announced

inquire the claims of all Forms 6,7,8,8A (under Rule 20 of RER,1960)

look into the applications for modification of the Draft Roll like addition, deletion etc. by calling claims and objections

ERO can suo-motu include/delete names which may have been inadvertently deleted/added respectively, in the Draft Roll during revision process (except during Continuous Updation), after following due procedure

Conduct of Special Summary Revision:

The Commission generally announces a common program for revision of rolls in all States throughout the country with respect to first January of the year as the qualifying date. The existing rolls in force is published as draft electoral roll and applications for inclusion of eligible persons are invited.

Forms
Form 6 - Any person who claims to register his name in the electoral roll, should fill up/get filled the form and either sign or give thumb impression on this form. If the persons name is already existing in roll of any assembly constituency then its details should be provided in part IV of form-6 Form 7 - Every objection to the inclusion of a persons name in the roll should be given in this form. Objector should provide the justification for filing the objection Form 8 - Every objection to any entry in roll should be given in this by the person to whom the entry relates

Form 8A - Every application for transposition of an entry from one part to another part of the roll within the same assembly constituency should be in this form.
21

Receipt of Forms of Claims and Objections

No Forms of claims or objection are to be
accepted after the prescribed last day of filling Forms

Forms can be received by ERO/AERO or any

officer designated by ERO under Rule 14(a), RER, 1960 like DO/BLO
Form 6 Form 7 Form 8 Form 8A

Forms can also be sent by post directly to the

concerned ERO

DEOs/EROs prescribe the holidays and non

working days and non working hours as duty period for teachers appointed as DO/BLOs

Procedure of receiving claims and objections

1. Acknowledgment/receipt should be given for each application of claim/ objection received by BLO 2. Any claim/ objection can be given/sent to ERO by post or in person to BLO. 3. Claims/objections given in bulk by person or post not accepted 4. The claims of all members of one family can be received for the registration of names in electoral roll from any one member of the family 5. Collective acknowledgment/receipt should be issued for the same 6. Incorrect or incomplete application should not be accepted.

23

Procedure of receiving claims and objections

For special campaign days, ERO appoints Designated Officer Written instructions given to the Designated Officer to remain present at earmarked venue Designated Officer/ BLO will maintain list in form 9, 10, 11 and 11A for applications received in form _____________ Form 6,7,8, 8A. Designated Officer/BLO write their recommendations on the application received for claims/objections before sending to ERO BLO writes comments on records submitted by the applicant for proof of his age.
24

Procedure of receiving claims and objections

Hearing on application of claim/objections commence after being Form 9,10,11, 11A.for 7 days - Rule 16(b), RER 1960 exhibited in form ___________ During revision period, any claim/objection not lodged within the ERO specified period and in the given format is rejected by ____________ ERO specifies date, time and place of hearing of claim/objection in the list

25

Part & Sl. No. of previous enrollment

Transposition (Form 8A)

EPIC

Ordinary residence

Correction (Form 8)

Part & Sl. No. of enrollment Evidence in favour of correction sought for

26

27

28

Preliminary Checking of Form 6

Applicants shifting residence in the same Constituency should be guided to file application in Form 8A and not Form 6 for transposition of entry Details of the immediate family members (father, mother, husband, siblings) already enrolled in the current Rolls should be indicated for applicants applying for the first time on attaining age 18 years. Date of birth and age should be indicated. Where age is not known, approximate age as on qualifying date should be written

For applicants between age 18-25 years, name and relation should be checked with respect to the applicants family members already enrolled

Underage applicant should not get enrolled

EPIC details should also be reflected in the Form

Non EPIC holders of 25+ age-group should give a declaration in the Form as given in Annexure 5.7

Preliminary Checking of Form 6

Annexure 5.7 For an Elector of 25 + age group not having an EPIC

Preliminary Checking of Form 6

Part II of Form 6 complete address ordinary residence address with proof should be checked. The proof can be any of the following documents Bank/Kisan/Post Office/Pass Book/ Ration card/Driving license/Passport/ Gas connection/Telephone/Electricity/Water bill etc.

If an applicant has been staying at an address for one year or more but not enrolled, then the circumstances why s/he has not applied should be ascertained and recoded on the application Form
Applicants should be advised to fill in the details like Part no., serial no. and EPIC no. of their immediate family members in Part III of Form 6 The applicant must fill Part IV related to the full details of previous enrollment especially the address

The declaration of Part IV, at the end of Form 6 should be complete in all respect

Check that a declaration of non-inclusion of name, should be attached by Service personnel along with Form 6

Preliminary Checking of Form 7 and 8

Form 7 Form should not be received without details of the objector and person objected to. The Form without complete details may be rejected under rule 17

Form 8 Forms should have the exact details of the entries to be corrected in Part IV The applicant must attach the supporting documents wherever needed

Registration of persons holding declared offices

Any holder of a declared office like Presidents, Speaker of Lok Sabha etc can enroll in the electoral roll in his home address AERO ensures that the names of all MP, MLA, MLC are enrolled in the electoral roll.

ERO produces a certificate to CEO mentioning the names of MP, MLA, and MLC who are enrolled in electoral roll at the time of draft publication.

33

Enrollment of overseas electors

An overseas elector is - an Indian citizen absent from his place of ordinary residence in India due to employment, education or otherwise - has neither included his name in electoral roll nor has acquired citizenship of any other country

He/she can register the name in the electoral roll from the part area mentioned in his/her passport
Any overseas elector who has completed the age of 18 years can submit his application form 6A either in person or by post to the concerned AERO/ERO of the residential area mentioned in his passport
34

Enrollment of overseas electors (Contd.)

Role of BLOs On instruction from ERO, verify the self attested copies sent by the applicant

No EPIC to overseas electors The electors overseas are not issued EPIC but use their passport for their identification to caste a vote

35

Enrolment of Service Voters

Person belonging to any of the following has Service qualification and is referred to as Service voter A member of armed forces of India A member of force under the provisions of the army Act, 1950

A member of an Armed Police Force of State who is serving outside that State
Employed under the Government of India in a post outside India Wife of any members mentioned above who is ordinarily residing with him

36

Enrolment of Service Voters (Contd.)

Three kinds of forms for three different categories are filled to become a Service Voter. Forms are submitted at his designated Record Office or to his superior authority. It is not mandatory to be registered as service voter for every person who has Service Qualification. He can enroll himself as ordinary voter A service voter can either register as service voter or an ordinary voter. Registering at both places is an offence. BLOs role comes when - when a service decides to register as a general voter - His/ her family members who are not service voters want to register.

37

Enrolment of orphans
Eligible orphan in orphanage can be enrolled by registering his orphanage name in place of his parents. Eligible orphan brought up by a family can be enrolled by entering name of head of the family Eligible orphan legally adopted by family can be enrolled by entering his adopted father/mother s name. Any orphan not covered under above mentioned categories can be enrolled by entering Not Known by BLO
38

 Age proof like birth certificate, certificate from school Citizenship proof like copy of EPIC of parents Proof of Ordinary Residence like rationcard, passport etc

Age Parental Linkage in Electoral Roll (for citizenship issue) /citizenship proof

Students

New Voter

Ordinary residence

Inclusion (Form 6) Married women Shifted from other AC

Age proof Nationality proof Proof of Ordinary Residence before marriage Marriage Registration Certificate proof of Ordinary Residence

Voters above 25 yrs

Address of previous residence Ac No.& if possible Part/Sl. No. of previous enrollment EPIC or other citizenship evidence Ordinary residence
39

Declaration as to delayed registration (age>25 yrs) (Part 4 of form 6)

Special care to verify citizenship status

Ordinary residence

Disposal of Claims and Objections

ERO may ask the verifying Officer (Designated Officer, BLO etc.) to verify facts and receive entries with remarks in small batches either daily, weekly or whenever the number of applications exceed 50 An individual notice with date and time of hearing should be sent to the applicants in case of inquiry. The ERO has to give notice of hearing In case of a claim to the claimant In case of an objection to the inclusion of name, notice to objector In case of an objection to the, notice to the person objected to In case of objection to a particular or particular

Disposal of Claims and Objections

Form 12 (Annexure 5.12)

Disposal of Claims and Objections

Form 13 (Annexure 5.13)

Disposal of Claims and Objections

Form 14 (Annexure 5.14)

Disposal of Claims and Objections

Form 15 (Annexure 5.15)

Disposal of Claims and Objections

EROs should ensure that all the applications received are disposed in accordance with law and direction All Form 6 without particulars of previous EPIC and more than 25 years of age should be checked and confirmed that they are not enrolled in some other area All Forms 6 with previous EPIC details should be enrolled by informing the ERO of the previous area to delete the entry from that area and transfer the photo that concerned elector ERO may refer applications (Form 6,7,8,8A) to the AERO for disposal in accordance with law and both ERO and AERO can get the details locally verified by the verifying officers

ERO can reject the claims/objections not received during the period mentioned, under rule 17 of RER, 1960
ERO may directly allow the entry in the Roll under rule 18 of RER, 1960, if he/she is satisfied with the details or may verify in case if doubt

Disposal of Claims and Objections

Under clause (b) of Rule 16 RER 1960, ERO should draw up the program of hearing within a period of 7 clear days from the date when he received applications in his office. The ERO has power to require any claimant, objector, person objected to, to appear in person before him for clarification and sub-rule (3) of rule 20 of RER, 1960, ERO can ask the information on oath / affidavit. ERO should record the decisions with the reasons and should enter the decision just below the entries in the respective Forms 9,10,11, 11A List of applications accepted and rejected should be displayed on the notice board for any claim or objections Form 6, 7, 8 and 8A ERO should insist on the presence of the claimant ERO should get the facts verified by the verification officer where the verifying officer should submit full particulars of verification like date of visit, if the person was physically present etc

Disposal of Claims and Objections

If the ERO is not satisfied of the age proof of the applicant even after the verification, he/she may take the evidence on oath of applicant as well as any member of family Form 7 should be carefully scrutinized as they are not used to delete names of genuine electors In doubtful cases, in absence of the persons at home during verification, ERO should send an individual notice with a date and time of hearing either before ERO or AERO In case of inconvenience in traveling hearing could be held at the village/taluka/zonal offices In case of large applications, ERO may informally associate representative from recognized political party of the state who knows inhabitants of locality

Detailed guidelines on Deletion of entries

Information on EROs Notice board
Found the entry in more than one Constituency

EROs Notice Board

Copy of deletion applications received Inviting Objections Objections are invited <from date> to <to date> (7 working days excluding Sunday/public holiday) Actions will be taken on <date>

Found the entry more than once

Shifted the entry to another Constituency

Found details faulty after inquiry and verification

Other Points Notice should be sent to the individual person concerned/presenting the application, with the date of hearing No specific Form is prescribed for objection ERO carries verification of all applications including death cases

Continuous Updation (Between Revision)

Continuous updation

in the Electoral registration system is possible through out the year, though it is not widely known Under Section 23 & 24 RPA, 1950, applications for inclusion/deletion/modification of the names or particulars can be given from Final publication of Roll to the next Draft publication , to update the entries in the next Final Electoral Roll Process of continuous updation is halted only during other types of revisions and during an election from the last date of filing of nominations till declaration of results

Procedure of making applications during continuous updation

Photo of Elector must be given
Form 6 Form 7 Form 8

Applications are made under Sections 22 or 23 RPA, 1950

Applications should be made in appropriate Forms in duplicate

Form 8A

TO, ERO

Deletion, correction and transposition of names can be made by ERO on receiving application or suo-moto . There is no provision for suo moto inclusion of names by ERO

Sub: Inclusion

Applicants should submit their photo for enrolling with photo in Electoral Roll Form (001A) for submission of photos and Form (001B) for corrections are no longer used. Form 8 is used for these purposes as well

 Bulk applications during continuous updation

Applications in bulk can be received by ERO during continuous updation only The person submitting the applications in bulk should take care of the following points:

Submit the applications of only that area of the Part where he himself is an elector

Should have EPIC of that Part

Submit Covering letter with list of applicants, basic particulars and their authentication

Submit Declaration that he is aware of penal provision u/s 31, RPA, 1950
Declaration Form

EPIC

Actions taken on receiving the applications

All claims and objections received during Continuous Updation should List of applications in Form 9,10,11 and 11A to be prepared and put up on
the notice board of ERO website of CEO

Personal notice must be given to the person submitting claims and objection Disposal of as per rules by ERO only on-line using ERMS Applicant must be informed of the decision of ERO both by SMS and in writing by post The corrections/deletion/transposition of entries shall be under Section 22 RPA 1950 and additions under Section 23 RPA 1950

Actions taken on receiving the applications

ERO should maintain a set of four separate registers for each Constituency in the format prescribed by Commission (Annexure 8.1, 8.2, 8.3 and 8.4) ERO should maintain the data up-to-date all the times as there is no fixed time for the publication of the modification The register used for continuous updation shall be continuous supplement for that particular year The ERO should indicate the Section and Part no. on the top right hand corner of the application Form to link with the register in the following manner : Part No. 23/ Section No.2

Applications to be disposed monthly

Applications received in a calender month

Disposed during next month calender month

Computerized data entry for next Draft Roll

Preparation of manuscript separately in duplicate for each Part

Format of manuscript same as text Rolls, 8 columns entries

Copy of manuscript transferred to DEO by 7th next calender month

Completed till 25th of that month

Supplements of the continuous updation

The supplements of the continuous updations Should be printed as Part of the Draft Roll below last supplement of that year Should be printed before Draft Roll to integrate the entries in the Draft Roll in an election year Ensure tracking of the changes since last Final publication of Rolls Will have the serial number nest after the number in previous supplement, indicated on right hand corner of the header

Should have supplement process and year in words and Continuous updating <from date> to <to date> in figures There can be more than one supplement for each year

Appeal Against ERO's Decision

ERO's decision can be appealed to Appellate Officer in Form of a memorandum under rule 23 of RER, 1960 Appeal can be for the decisions under rule 20, 21 and 21A of RER only The appeal cannot be considered if he has not availed himself of the right to be heard or make representation to the EROs On receiving an appeal, the Appellate Officer would - check if the appeal is received in time. Time-barred appeals would be rejected - call for the records of the concerned ERO - give opportunity to ERO to be heard - shall take the necessary actions and dispose the appeal in maximum 3 weeks The changes made shall be considered from the date of decision taken

Penal Provisions
1.

2.

Breach of Official Duty: ERO or AERO are punishable under Section 32 of RPA,1950 if found guilty of any act or omission related to the preparation, revision and correction of an Electoral Roll. Court takes action against such offence only if the complaint is lodged by ECI or CEO of the State Punishable with imprisonment of minimum three months, maximum two years and fine No suit or other legal proceedings can take place against such officer. Making False Declaration: Any person is punishable under Section 31 of RPA 1950 if he makes any false written statement which he believes to be false in relation to preparation, revision and correction of Electoral Roll Offence is non-cognizable, bailable under Section 31 of RPA,1950 and is based on a written complaint by aggrieved person Period of limitation starts on the date of the order passed by ERO

Case 1
In one family their daughter-in-law, Sarita being a family member was a part of the electoral roll for that household. But she has been driven out of the house by the in-laws. Now to establish proof that Sarita does not stay in the household any more, her in-laws submit Form-7 for her. Sarita has not been legally divorced with her husband, nor the family produce any such document. Even the family is reluctant to give any information of her present residence. What can the BLO do in such a situation?
58

Case 2
A BLO visits an orphanage located in his Part, where orphans are brought up and looked after from infancy. He finds that Ramesh' is eligible for enrolment as an elector. But Ramesh' is not in a position to give the names of either his father or mother. Chinmaya' too is eligible for enrolment as an elector and he reveals the true name of his biological mother. What shall BLO enter in the column meant for father's/ mother's/husband's name for Ramesh and Chinmaya ? And what shall BLO enter in the relationship column in such cases.

59

Case 3
In one 'Ashram' or 'Akhada' a 'Sadhu' or 'Saint' is eligible to be an elector. He does not reveal his worldly name but insists to be enrolled in his rechristened name with suffix of his Guru's name instead of his father. What does BLO enter in the columns related to name of father/mother/husband and in column related to relationship?

60

Case 4
An elector is enrolled in Part no. 35 of a particular AC. His name is in section-4, i.e. Satyam society. Now he has shifted to Riddhi-Siddhi colony which falls in section-2 of the same Part. What is required to be done by the BLO to update his entry in the electoral roll?

61

Case 5
Mr. Hemal applies under RTI to the BLO to provide him all the photo copies of Forms 6, 7, and 8. What should the BLO do?

62

Case 6
The BLO reaches the house of Mr. Kantibhai. unknown to the BLO the son of Mr Kantibhai, that is, Mr. Ketanbhai is wanted in a criminal case. Mr. Kantibhai fills Form-7 for the deletion of name of Mr Ketanbhai on the pretext that his son has shifted to another State. Next when the BLO visits the neighbour of Mr Kantibhai , the neighbour informs the BLO that Mr Kantibhai still stays there and that he is hiding from the Police. Should the BLO delete the name of Mr. Kantibhai on the basis of Form-7 filled by his father?
63

Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC)

Front Side of EPIC 5 cm 8.4 cm
FUSN

Elector s Photo
Security Hologram Elector s Name Elector s Gender Elector s Father/ Mother/ Husbands Name
64

Date of Birth

Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC)

Back of EPIC

Elector s Address

EPIC Issuing Date EROs Signature Name & Number of AC

65

Some Key points

In case of change of residence, roll registration needs to be changed but EPIC issued earlier remains valid BLOs collect electors photograph from:
Onsite mode: Designated photography Location (DPL) Offsite Mode: Getting from Form 8 Getting from Form 6 House of electors with the help of camera teams

Collected photographs are digitized and entered in electoral roll database

EPIC is prepared from electoral roll database

66

Some Key points

Only BLOs can distribute EPICs to the electors as directed by ECI Undistributed EPIC should be handed over to EROs by BLOs without fail BLOs should take certain actions to avoid errors in the Photo Electoral Roll:
Thoroughly check the checklist handed over by ERO/AERO Verify/ compare the copy with the manuscripts/photographs Sign every verified page Verify the EPIC number on roll with that on the card Oversee preparation of Mother roll and Supplements from the corrected database for his/her Part Attach verification certificate at end of the electoral roll

67

Case 1
Mr. Ajay is a school teacher in village Fatehpur. Instead of teaching during school hours, he goes to distribute the EPIC cards. After 15 days he receives show cause notice from his Head Office that why he should not be suspended for being absent during the teaching hours.

68

Case 2
Najma has filled Form-6 for addition of her name. Her name is entered in the rolls and EPIC card prepared accordingly and handed over to the BLO for distribution. When BLO tries to hand over the EPIC to Najma, she outrightly refuses to take the EPIC from the BLO on the grounds that the spelling of her name in the card is incorrect. Instead of 'Najma' with a j' in between, it has been written as as NAZMA with a z' in between. Najma wants her EPIC to be corrected and argues that she will not fill up any more Forms again.
69

Case 3
Mr. Naresh has rented a portion of his house to Mr. Bhatt. Mr. Bhatt fills Form-6 for inclusion of his name in the voters list. His landlord Mr. Naresh writes an application to the ERO that Bhatt 's EPIC card should not be prepared at this address. Now the ERO forwards the application to the BLO for enquiry, What should the BLO do?
70

Case 4
A BLO visits a house in his Part. At the time of his visit, the following members are present: Trivedi Rameshbhai Ramesh bhai M-48 Trivedi Kamlaben Rameshbhai F-45 Trivedi Satish Rameshbhai M-23 Trivedi Sudha Rameshbhai F-19
As per the BLO's existing Photo Electoral Roll record, against the name of Rameshbhai and of Kamlaben EPIC No GJ/07/125/583120 and EPIC No. GJ/07/123/583121 respectively is shown. While against the name of Satish EPIC no. HCX/0058398 is shown, Sudhaben has not been enrolled yet. At the time of verification Rameshbhai produces his EPIC no. LJM/4853394, his wife produces EPIC No. LJM/485353584 and Satish produces EPIC No. HCX/0058398. Their EPICs are original and entries are correct in all respects. Upon inquiry Rameshbhai reveals that initially EPICs were issued to them during the year 2000 and the EPIC available with him and his wife is that one. They were later issued another EPIC at the new address where they shifted in 2004. They have lost those EPIC cards. The EPIC numbers entry shown against him and his wife are as per the EPICs issued in 2004. They shifted to the present address in 2007. Now they want fresh EPICs for all the four members of the family updated with age and address. Should the BLO recommend new EPICs for them and do the needful?
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Case 5
During revision of electoral rolls a BLO visits a Mohalla/society. (a)Few voters don't have their names in roll at the new residence (b)Few have been enrolled in the roll but without photo image. Further, against the names of each of them, EPIC numbers are reflected but EPICs are not available for verification. All are demanding latest EPICs. What should the BLO do?

Case 6
A BLO wants to resign from his services as a BLO. Should an ERO accept his resignation? What should the ERO do?

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Electoral Rolls for Assembly and Parliamentary Constituency

Electoral Rolls are prepared for Assembly Constituency (AC) under the provisions of RP Act 1950

PC

AC

AC
Parts

No separate Electoral Roll for Parliamentary Constituency (PC) is maintained as that PC consists of Electoral Rolls for all its ACs

Parts Sections

Electoral Rolls are organized as geographically defined Parts which are further organized into Sections and Locality households Each Part has an identified Polling Station where electors cast their votes on the poll day

Area

Households

Layout and Structure of Electoral Roll

Title Page

Sketch Map

General Part
Elector Details

Summary Sheet Last Page

Service Voters

Layout and Structure of Electoral Roll

Electoral Roll is divided into convenient Parts with identifiable geographical boundary having its individual title page under Sub-rule (1) of Rule 5, RER 1960

This title page is followed by a sketch map of Polling Station area in that Part
Followed by elector details in prescribed format Summary sheet is provided at the end of Roll of a Part

Layout and Structure of Electoral Roll

These Parts are further organized into Sections The electors details are arranged in 8column format in text Roll and with photo in photo Roll. Last Part of Roll, lists the details of Service Voters (SVs) in English Number of names added in any Part should not exceed 2000 under Rule 5 (4), RER 1960

45 electors a page Text Roll

Text and Photo Roll

30 electors a page Photo Roll

Language of electoral rolls

Rule 4 of R E Rules which is normally the official language of the State/UT. However , in an Assembly Constituency, where more than 20% of the electors speak and use a different language than the official language and the number of people literate in that minority language and script is significantly large, the Commission will issue direction that it shall be printed and published in that minority language also . (The ballot paper shall also be printed in that case in multilingual form). Besides, the language of electoral rolls in all metros should also be published in English. Service voter s list

Draft Publication of Rolls

ERO publishes the Roll in Draft by making copy available for inspection and displaying a notice : At his office, within the Constituency At place specified by him, if his office is outside the Constituency

Pdf format of Roll (only in text mode) is uploaded at CEOs website in public domain.

Draft Publication of Electoral Rolls

Electoral Roll for all Constituencies in a State or even District is published on the same day. Publication of Roll includes all Parts of Roll of Assembly Constituency. Draft Rolls are published in the Polling Station so that the general electors can easily identify and file their claims/objections Publication is not made on a public

Free supply of copies of Draft Electoral Roll to Recognized Political parties

ERO provides free of cost 2 copies of Roll to every political party.

One soft pdf copy and one hard print copy of Rolls are shared with political parties as directed by ECI

Soft copy only indicates that photograph is available against the electors details and hard copy contains the photographs

Actions after Draft publication and before Final publication

ERO

scrutinizes Rolls himself at this stage like individual households showing more than 10 electors, death registers etc. arranges for reading each Part of the Roll loudly before the concerned Gram Sabha/ Ward Committee . Elector to population ratio is studied and reported to ECI revealing the age-wise under or over enrollments in comparison to census figures Age cohort analysis of the electors in the Roll with census population for various ages groups is

ERO

Actions after Draft publication and before Final publication

Polling Station wise abnormal addition and deletion over last 3 years is identified, verified, corrected and reported to ECI (annexure 2.5)
Data on EPIC & photo coverage in photo Electoral Roll is analyzed in the prescribed formats (annexure 2.6) Provide list of new Polling Stations created since last publication to ECI for analysis and record (annexure 2.7) Roll observers appointed by ECI visits the States and Districts to check and report on the quality of the Draft published

Suo- Motu Action by ERO after Draft Publication

ERO may direct the inclusion of names of electors in Roll if statements are received after Draft publication (Form 1 Rule 7 of RER 1960)
ERO will check the enumeration slips for intensive revision and claim application/ manuscript for summary revision, to ensure the addition/deletion/ NBW (non-bail able warrant) of all the respective entries under the title ERO will prepare the list of entries for inclusion, deletion and display on the notice board with time and place where actions would be taken Unexecuted non-bailable warrant (NBW) cases Person who is unexecuted for a period of 6 months or more is not considered as the ordinary resident of the address mentioned ERO may take suo-motu action of deleting the name after giving due notice with date and time of hearing

Final Publication of Electoral Roll

Steps for Final publication

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15
Give one hard 14 copy and one soft copy to all recognized political parties After approval of 12 Commission publish on ERO notice board, PS notice board and CEO website

9 Complete Statistical analysis of data in format 1 to 8

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10
Send proposal seeking prior approval of ECI for final publication of roll

11
Proposal should give justification for deviations in format 1 to 8
Supplements of Parts without amendments, should provide nil information Get supplement for every Part, even if there are no amendments

6 ERO Continue 8 Do not wait for disposal ERO prepares Final 7 List for Parts with no of all claims and with your order claims and objections objections, continue related to claims , and no action with supplement and objections preparation of individual under rule 21/21A is for another needed Part Parts
1 Dispose the claims and objections after following due procedure

Prepare the Final 3 list of Supplementary for each part

List of Amendments (Supplements)

Final Roll is the Draft Roll with the lists of supplements prepared in the prescribed format.
Supplements have three components: 1. Component I Additions 2. Component II Deletions 3. Component III Corrections All components of supplements are in same language as of basic Electoral Roll published as Draft Serial numbers for voters in Supplement - Component I is the continuation of last serial number in draft Roll If there are no entries in one or more components, nil is entered under the relevant heading In case of all nil amendments, nil Final lists of amendments are prepared

Statistical Analysis in Format 1 to 8

Assembly and PS wise analysis of EP ratio, Sex ratio, Age Cohorts, additions and deletions percentages against expected values Permission to be sought from ECI for final publication based on Statistical Analysis

Printing of Final Roll

PDF copy of supplements with summary sheet is printed as soon as the Final lists of amendments are prepared and Finalized Name and designation of ERO is printed at the end of all copies of Final lists of amendments Parallel to the above, a pdf copy of supplements is appended to draft Roll and complete set of Electoral Roll is uploaded on CEOs website in public domain with search facility

Printing of Final Roll

Title page with date of publication should be added on the top The order of pages stitched together are: title page, table of contents, general Part of Electoral Roll and last Part (service voters) of Electoral Roll Notice is displayed in Form 16 for statutory publication of Electoral (Annexure 6.1)

ERO ensures the correct arrangement and completion of Electoral Roll before sending it for publication

Annexure 6.1

Free Supply of Copies to Recognized Political Parties

ERO supplies free of cost two complete sets of Electoral Rolls to all the recognized political parties in the State (Both National and State recognized parties) after every publication of Roll One copy is hard copy and other is soft PDF copy Soft PDF copy has only elector details without photographs. It only indicates whether photographs are available ERO prepares an authentic copy of Roll with each page ink signed by two assigned officers. Copy of authentic Roll is kept with DEO for record purposes.

Final Roll in an Election Year

In the election year:

Authentic copy of Roll is computer generated copy and all deletions are strike through in the mother Roll by software DELETED is imprinted diagonally across the electors box in the photo Roll whose name is in deletion list with the authenticated signatures in red ink Hash(#) mark is imprinted against the original record in Draft Roll to signify the correction entry in the supplement Photo as in supplement is inscribed across the photo box for the photographs either added/ corrected/ deleted Another supplement to the Finally published copy of Roll is prepared due to the continuation of elector registration till last day of the nominations. The same procedure follows for additions/deletions/ corrections for this supplement

Final Roll in Non-Election Year

In the non-election year:

Final Roll is published similarly as in the election year with only difference of:
No need of marking strike-through or # in the basic Roll to indicate changes effected in the supplements

Basic Roll is not re-printed at the time of Final publication

Number of copies required for Final publication is easily assessed and printed while printing the Draft Roll

Custody and Upkeep of Electoral Rolls and Connected Papers

Following papers are kept in EROs office or at place specified by CEO after Roll is Finally published under Sub-rule(1) of Rule 32 of RER, 1960: A complete copy of Roll Statements submitted to ERO under Rule 7 Statements submitted to ERO under Rule 8 Register of enumeration Forms Applications related to preparation of Roll Manuscript Parts prepared by enumerating agencies and used for compiling Papers related to claims and objections Papers related to appeals under Rule 23 Applications under Section 22 & 23 of RPA,1950

Electoral Roll for each Polling booth is kept with the mother Roll folder related

Inspection & Certified Copy of Electoral Rolls

Every person has right to inspect the election papers under Rule 32 of RER,1960 and can procure attested copies on payment

Certified copy of relevant entries of Electoral Roll can be given to the person in prescribed formats based on text Roll or photo Roll (annexure 6.2 & 6.3)

Annexure 6.2 & 6.3

Annexure 6.2 Annexure 6.3

Inspection & Certified Copy of Electoral Rolls

Only certified copy of entry related to oneself in photo Roll can be obtained by an applicant

Attested/certified copies of complete Electoral Roll is supplied under Right to Information Act 2005 or Rule 23 of RER,1960 if demanded
Individual entries or selective pages are not provided under RTI

Application Received Under RTI is Dealt in Context of Section 8(1)(j) of RTI, 2005

Disposal of Electoral Rolls and Connected Papers

The expired papers in rule 32 related to general/special revision ordered by ECI are disposed off as directed by CEO These papers are shredded and made into pulp for recycling on the specified expiry period

Excessive Copies of Electoral Roll are disposed of after 3 months period from the date of Final publication of Electoral Roll after next intensive revision

Returning Officers (RO) and Electoral Roll for Conduct of Elections

Electoral Roll including all supplements carrying modifications till last day of nominations is the Final Roll used for the purpose of conduct of election RO allows inspection of the complete Roll of the Constituency RO provides identical copies of Final Electoral Roll to the candidates of recognized political parties of the State within three days after the date of withdrawals and Finalization of candidate . This is not necessary during bye elections

Returning Officers (RO) and Electoral Roll for Conduct of Elections

One copy of Final Roll is used for marking the names of electors who are issued post ballot (PB) and election duty certificates (EDC) Proxy voter list in the prescribed format is attached to this copy of Roll set apart for marking Three more identical copies of this Final Roll is given to presiding officer and Polling team to conduct elections and are called Working Copies of Roll

Returning Officers (RO) and Electoral Roll for Conduct of Elections

One copy of Final Roll is used for marking the names of electors who are issued post ballot (PB) and election duty certificates (EDC) Proxy voter list in the prescribed format is attached to this copy of Roll set apart for marking Three more identical copies of this Final Roll is given to presiding officer and Polling team to conduct elections and are called Working Copies of Roll

RO and Electoral Roll for Conduct of Elections

Commission had received representation in the past for the arbitrary deletions of entries in the Electoral Rolls used by Polling parties In the same context, ECI issued some instructions: Copies of Electoral Rolls supplied to candidates should be identical to working copy of Roll supplied to Polling team except the PB, EDC markings and proxy voters list Working copy with PB, EDC markings is shown to agents and candidates before Polling so that they can compare entries, deletions and corrections with their copies Three working copies, statutory marked should be sealed and submitted to RO for safe custody Names should be printed alphabetically in the Roll for easy identification and search of voters inside Polling Station

Rationalization of Polling Stations

ERO reorganizes the Rolls with respect to new Parts before publishing the Draft Roll Some points that are ascertained: Separate and independent Polling Station is created for each revenue village having > 300 of population as directed by ECI In urban areas, the Parts are reorganized to ensure not more than 1400 voters in that Part.

Rationalization of Polling Stations

De-congestion of Polling Station is ensured such that not more than 4 Polling Stations in urban and not more than 2 Polling Stations in rural areas. Roll of the Part is neatly organized into Sections. Proposed list of new Polling Stations is published as Draft and shared with recognized political parties to invite their objections/claims Roll is organized with changed set of Polling Stations after receiving approval of ECI

BLOs-Main Duties and Responsibilities

All through the year Custodian of the electoral roll Ensure availability of different forms physical verification of rolls Maintaining the election related documents

Periodical Updating of the rolls National Voters Day Activity Dec-Jan Ensure correct serialization of houses Prepare najari map

Revision Period Structural revision and updating of rolls Coordination with BLAs Displaying draft rolls Reading of rolls in gram sabhas

Special Direction Photo coverage in the roll Obtain geographical information of Part area Coordination with BLAs Impart Systematic Voters Education for Electoral Participation (SVEEP) Distribution of voters slip before polls Any other work under the instruction of ERO/AERO

Booth Level Officer (BLO)

He is responsible for maintaining the electoral roll of the assigned part area under the control and supervision of Election Commission of India/ Chief Electoral Officer of state/DEO/ERO/AERO concerned Under section 13B(2) RP Act,1950 - From 2006, BLO's are appointed after obtaining the prior approval of District Election Officer (DEO) concerned Under Section 13CC RP Act, 1950 - BLO functions under the control & supervision of ECI/CEO of state Selection of BLOs will be from the employees of State government/local bodies for allocation of one part EROs/ AEROs are expected to have contact details of their BLOs which is updated on the website of ECI/CEO. Each BLO will be issued a special kit and is entitled to remuneration Punishment for wilful default u/s 32 108

Booth Level Agents EPIC

BLOs role in Gram Sabhas BLOs Duties & Roles Photo Electoral Rolls

Enrollment of electors

BLOs Appointment

BLO Register

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5. TO PREPARE CORRECT MAP BY FREE HAND EYE ESTIMATION (NAZARI MAP) OF PART AREA

Prepare Nazari map by freehand clearly indicating sections within the part.

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Sample of Nazari
(illustrative)

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NUMBERING OF HOUSES FALLING WITHIN

POLLING STATION AREA/PART AREA Acquire knowledge about the number of sections and boundaries of their part area to give correct serial numbers to the houses. Serialization of the houses should be in ascending order beginning from North-West to South-East in zigzag manner

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What are the Roles of BLO with regard to service voters

Take action for getting the Form 6 filled wherever necessary Ascertain that person with service qualification have been staying at place of residence for sufficient span of time to register him as ordinary voter Fill form 6 for the children of all service voters eligible to be registered as ordinary voters Fill form 6 for the husband of a service voter to be registered as ordinary voter

Wife of service voter has a choice to either be registered as service voter or ordinary voter
Should visit the units of service voters to ensure above.
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Cover Page of BLO Register

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Booth Level Officers register helps keep the Electoral Rolls updated and error free BLO register is to be filled up afresh every year for Revision of Rolls BLO register comprises of two parts: 1. Annexure 1
1. BLO can make corrections to confirm the existing entries of electors which are listed household wise

2. In addition, birth date and telephone numbers are taken

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Annexure 1

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Annexure 2
1. Newly developed and under construction areas/societies/apartments etc is entered here

2.Newly arrived/ newly eligible/left out electors of that part are entered here

3. Household wise, population (total of voters and non-voters) and gender ratio of that part are entered here

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Annexure 2
1. Newly developed areas/societies/apartments

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Annexure 2
2. Newly arrived eligible electors

121

Annexure 2
3. Population and gender ratio of that part
Total number of households in this Part

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Gram Sabhas and Role of BLOs

BLOs read out the list of the following to the sabha - Addition of names - Deletion of names - Modification of names Courtesy: http://www.indiatogether.org/2005/sep/wom-attend.htm - Duplicate names - Details of the households with more than 10 voters The reading is done with an order issued under the signature of the concerned ERO The following details are covered in the order Name of AC: ______________
Part No. Urban/ Rural Date of Gram Sabha/ ward meeting Venue of Meeting Time of meeting Name of the class II officer deputed by ERO to attend meeting Designation of class II officer deputed by ERO to attend meeting Contact number of officer deputed BLOs name and contact number Remarks

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Reporting the meeting BLOs submit a report on completion of the meeting in the given format
Report by BLO of Reading of Electoral Roll of Part in Gram Sabha/Ward Meeting
Sr. No Name of Officer/ employee deputed by ERO to attend meeting Address of place where electoral roll reading meeting was held Date of meeting Serial number of part or parts of electoral roll/s read in the meeting Number of persons who attended the meeting Number of persons above 80 years of age in the roll Number of families with more than 10 persons registered as voters in roll Number of dead voters in roll Number of shifted voters Number of claims and objections received up till date of this meetings

10

11

11b

11 c

11 d

11 e

8A

6A

Signature of Talati Name of Talalti Village/Sehra:

Signature of BLO Name of BLO Designation Part No : AC Name:

Signature of officer deputed Name of Officer Designation of Officer

Please note: This report is to be send directly to the Office of the concerned AERO, with a copy marked to the concerned ERO * List of names given in column 7,8,9,10 to be read out in the gramshbha
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Thank You
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