The duplication of Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) numbers united the Congress, Trinamool and the Biju Janata Dal in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Members of the three parties on Tuesday moved notices under Rule 267 seeking suspension of all listed business to discuss the EPIC issue. Deputy Chairman Harivansh rejected all the notices, saying they should be moved under a separate rule. This prompted the MPs to troop to the Well of the House, leading to the adjournment of proceedings for around 40 minutes.
BJD floor leader Sasmit Patra told reporters in Parliament: “Yesterday we staged a walkout on the EPIC issue. We are with other Opposition parties protesting against
this issue.”
The BJD, the BJP and Trinamool raised the issue with the Election Commission on Tuesday.
BJD IT head Amar Patnaik told reporters that the party was not satisfied with the EC’s reply to its memorandum submitted in December on irregularities in the results of the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in Odisha.
“We had mentioned in our earlier memorandum that discrepancies indicated therein were unusual and showed that there was either machine (EVM) error or manual error (during data entry) or process error or a combination of all these,” he said, adding that doubts about the conduct of fair elections had been strengthened by the failure to furnish Forms 17C Part I & II despite repeated requests.
Patnaik also suggested an independent audit of the poll process.
The EC said: “It was also informed that as per the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, the record of votes polled in all booths is already given to the polling agents of all candidates as per Form 17C.”
The BJP co-incharge for Bengal, Amit Malviya, accused the Bengal government of having “infiltrated the voter roll with illegal Bangladeshis and Rohingyas”.
“We have apprised the EC that there are more than 13 lakh duplicate voters in Bengal... and about 8,415 voters with similar EPIC numbers. We have also urged the EC to look at cleaning up the voter roll and identifying these illegal voters,” he said.
The EC responded on X: “Updation of electoral roll is a participative process with all political parties, including established mechanisms of appeal under section 24 of RPA 1950.”
In its memorandum, Trinamool alleged the use of “cloned Aadhaar cards” to facilitate fake voter registrations. “Why has ECI not clearly stated on its Form 6B that seeding Aadhaar with EPIC is an entirely voluntary process and that it is not compulsory? How does the ECI ensure that the alleged cloning of Aadhaar numbers does not affect the EPIC and electoral registration of voters?”
The EC responded: “...All concerns, including duplicate EPIC numbers, duplicate, shifted & dead voters and illegal migrants, will be resolved by each booth-level officer and ERO (electoral registration officers) concerned with active participation of booth-level agents appointed by all political parties.”
EC seeks feedback
The EC has invited suggestions from all parties by April 30 for any unresolved issues at the level of ERO (electoral registration officers), DEO (district election officer) or the CEO (chief electoral officer). The EC said it had also written to political parties inviting them for an interaction “at a mutually convenient time to further strengthen electoral processes”.