Missing names of voters from extracted voter lists for Kashmiri Migrants

Displaced Community of Kashmir is facing a serious problem of missing names electoral roll extracts corresponding to each of these Special Polling Stations established in Jammu & Udhampur. This issue has been taken up with Chief Electoral Officer JK UT  by former MLC & BJP spokesperson Girdhari Lal Raina. Incidentally his name was also missing from the draft rolls in spite of submitting M-Form.

Raina wrote to CEO terming the issue as urgent that needs attention and intervention.  After removing the necessity of M Form for Kashmiri Migrant voters in this on-going Lok Sabha election the community has been enthusiastically waiting for the Election Day to exercise their right to vote. But unfortunately unforeseen difficulties continue to confront these voters, he said.

It may be recalled that on April 12, 2024 the Election Commission of India provided a major relief by abolishing the cumbersome procedure of filling Form-M for the displaced people from valley who are residing in Jammu and Udhampur.

The modified scheme envisaged culling out Electoral roll extracts corresponding to each of the Special Polling Stations shall be of the basic electoral rolls of their respective assembly constituencies. The Draft Electoral Roll Extracts, to be used as the rolls for respective Special Polling Stations, for each of the Zone had to be notified by the respective AERO Migrants at Jammu and Udhampur and published in the newspapers as well as given wide publicity by placing it at all conspicuous places in the zone including the Zone Office as well as other places of importance for the Migrants like Office of the Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner, J&K, websites, etc.

All electors within 7 days of the notification of the draft electoral roll extract, approach the respective Assistant Returning Officers (Migrant) at Jammu and Udhampur in case there was any omission of any eligible name in the draft lists. Nothing like that happened.

Even after submitting M-Form / consent form in their respective zones or with the office of ARO migrants or in office premises at Shankar Building the names are missing from draft extract rolls prepared by Relief organisation, Raina claimed.  He stressed that a large number of complaints of missing names are reported from almost everywhere. In absence of any authorised communication anxiety, distress and resentment is replacing joy of the culmination of M-Form era.

Former MLC asked for authorised authority to issue an appropriate guideline/instructions to officials to ensure inclusion of all eligible names in the extract voter list of their respective zones and to electors having their names in final voter list of their respective constituencies assuring them of enabler mechanism to cast their votes even if name is not in the extract voter list.

He further demanded that no voter with EPIC card or number be turned back without exercising the fundamental right to vote.