Dimapur, March 1 (MExN): Congress leader K Therie today called the state’s photo electoral roll a “mermaid” in that it has substantial ‘irregularities’ – bogus enumeration, duplication, multiplication, impersonation and enumeration of under-aged.
“With this great hope I examined the Photo Electoral Roll page by page and found it to be a mermaid with irregularities in all polling stations. More than two thirds of the electoral roll are by way of bogus enumeration, duplication, multiplication, impersonation and enumeration of under-aged in all polling stations,” the former Finance Minister said in a press release received here today.
Enumerators and officers related in registering voters are cheating with the knowledge to cause wrongful loss to the democratic state and candidates, Therie stated. “Registration of voters in two or more polling stations is cheating and dishonest. The public servants concerned and the officers supervising electoral registration as well as the errant voters are liable to be charged under IPC 176, 171D, 416, 418 and 420.”
The Representation of People’s Act of 1950 section 17 says that no person is to be registered in more than one constituency while section 18 says that no person is to be registered more than once in any constituency. Section 19 specifies a voter to be at least 18 years of age on the qualifying date and should ordinarily reside in the Constituency. Any voter violating the above laid down laws is liable to be punished under Electoral Offenses mentioned in the foregoing IPC sections.
The Congress leader has suggested that the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Nagaland give opportunity to all enumerators, officers and voters to voluntarily correct/delete within a given time-frame as is deemed fit and proper.
Secondly, qualifying voters of Nagaland “display Christian honesty and be faithful to oneself, to your country and to God.” Thirdly, Therie suggested, the CEO print out clear copies for all political parties and make available at the earliest.
The fourth suggestion he made was that the “political parties resolve to raise objection on all bogus enumerations, duplications, multiplications, impersonations, fictitious names, inclusion of under-aged and give all efforts to clean the photo electoral roll taking the advantage of photographs.”
The publication of Photo Electoral Roll by the Chief Election Office is a laudable achievement, Therie said. “It has been massive operation. We hope that finally genuine voters will be able to vote.”
