PATNA: Diwakar Sharma remembers the past two elections clearly. His wife Deepti voted both times without trouble. Now her name has disappeared from the electoral roll , and the couple has just a week to prove she still belongs.
Across Bihar, thousands are scrambling to reclaim their place on the rolls before the Sept 1 deadline - a race against time that began when SC Friday opened a narrow window for those struck off during the SIR. Voters can now submit Aadhaar or one of 11 other approved documents, even online, to restore their names. The urgency is palpable in Ara, Bhojpur, Bettiah - wherever one goes.
"The BLO (booth-level officer) told me what SC has just said, but he's waiting for written orders," Sharma, a 35-year-old priest in West Champaran, told TOI on Saturday.
On paper, the ruling offers relief. On the ground, confusion is choking the process. Many deleted voters live in remote areas with limited internet access. BLOs, the backbone of the enrolment system, said they are yet to receive "formal instructions" on how to act. "We cannot consider Aadhaar until EC issues an official order," said a BLO from East Champaran.
Suchitra Sinha, a BLO from Bhojpur, warned that the timeline is too short. "Poll authorities should extend the deadline. It is difficult to collect Aadhaar from all excluded people within a week," she said. Without written orders from the chief electoral officer or district officials, BLOs fear their decisions could be challenged later.
Frustration runs deep over political apathy, too. Electoral rules expect parties to deputise booth-level agents to help identify excluded voters and file claims. BLOs said support is scarce.
"Hardly any BLAs are taking interest in submitting forms. Some are not even aware they have been appointed," said M Safir Ali, a BLO in Ara. Another BLO in Ara's Babu Bazar accused parties of "raising noise but offering no assistance".
Politicians pushed back. "Our party submitted nine claim forms in Bhojpur district alone till Aug 23 and has been consistently drawing attention to deletions," said CPI(ML)'s Chandan Kumar, an aide to Ara MP Sudama Prasad. Jan Suraaj's Ashok Manav said workers were assisting in all 14 blocks, but argued it was "the prime responsibility of election officials to ensure not a single eligible voter is disenfranchised".
The scale of deletions is staggering. West Champaran saw 1,91,376 names removed, slashing the voter count to 25,69,614 from 27,60,990. Officials say 70,000 voters had shifted residences, while 20,000 names were duplicates.
For people like Sharma and trader Dhananjay Soni in Valmikinagar, whose wife Ranjana also vanished from the rolls, the SC ruling has brought hope - but little clarity. "One week remains," Soni said. "Time is running out."
(With inputs from Praveen in Ara and Dilip in Bettiah)
Across Bihar, thousands are scrambling to reclaim their place on the rolls before the Sept 1 deadline - a race against time that began when SC Friday opened a narrow window for those struck off during the SIR. Voters can now submit Aadhaar or one of 11 other approved documents, even online, to restore their names. The urgency is palpable in Ara, Bhojpur, Bettiah - wherever one goes.
"The BLO (booth-level officer) told me what SC has just said, but he's waiting for written orders," Sharma, a 35-year-old priest in West Champaran, told TOI on Saturday.
On paper, the ruling offers relief. On the ground, confusion is choking the process. Many deleted voters live in remote areas with limited internet access. BLOs, the backbone of the enrolment system, said they are yet to receive "formal instructions" on how to act. "We cannot consider Aadhaar until EC issues an official order," said a BLO from East Champaran.
Suchitra Sinha, a BLO from Bhojpur, warned that the timeline is too short. "Poll authorities should extend the deadline. It is difficult to collect Aadhaar from all excluded people within a week," she said. Without written orders from the chief electoral officer or district officials, BLOs fear their decisions could be challenged later.
Frustration runs deep over political apathy, too. Electoral rules expect parties to deputise booth-level agents to help identify excluded voters and file claims. BLOs said support is scarce.
"Hardly any BLAs are taking interest in submitting forms. Some are not even aware they have been appointed," said M Safir Ali, a BLO in Ara. Another BLO in Ara's Babu Bazar accused parties of "raising noise but offering no assistance".
Politicians pushed back. "Our party submitted nine claim forms in Bhojpur district alone till Aug 23 and has been consistently drawing attention to deletions," said CPI(ML)'s Chandan Kumar, an aide to Ara MP Sudama Prasad. Jan Suraaj's Ashok Manav said workers were assisting in all 14 blocks, but argued it was "the prime responsibility of election officials to ensure not a single eligible voter is disenfranchised".
The scale of deletions is staggering. West Champaran saw 1,91,376 names removed, slashing the voter count to 25,69,614 from 27,60,990. Officials say 70,000 voters had shifted residences, while 20,000 names were duplicates.
For people like Sharma and trader Dhananjay Soni in Valmikinagar, whose wife Ranjana also vanished from the rolls, the SC ruling has brought hope - but little clarity. "One week remains," Soni said. "Time is running out."
(With inputs from Praveen in Ara and Dilip in Bettiah)
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