New Delhi. Amid the ongoing legal and administrative turmoil over Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists, the Election Commission has released a revised schedule in six states including Delhi. Voters in Delhi and Maharashtra have been given additional time to file claims and objections, while in Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Nagaland, the deadline for disposal of claims has been extended.
The Election Commission, through letters issued on October 29, set a new timetable for Delhi, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Nagaland. This decision was taken after requests received from the Chief Electoral Officers of the respective states. In the case of Delhi, a day earlier the Supreme Court had asked the Commission to consider giving more time to voters to file applications.
Now claims will be filed in Delhi till 25th November
The last date for filing claims and objections in Delhi has been extended from 30 October to 25 November. Now there will be time till December 15 to dispose of them. The final voter list of the capital will be published on December 22. Earlier it was to be released on December 4.
Application period opened again in Maharashtra also
The period for filing claims and objections in Maharashtra had ended on October 26. The Commission has extended it till November 13. Here the last date for disposal of claims has been fixed as 25th November. The final voter list of the state will be released on November 30.
Time limit extended for disposal in four states
In Haryana and Andhra Pradesh, the date for disposal of claims and objections has been extended till November 20. This process will continue till November 25 in Nagaland and till November 26 in Telangana. The application filing period for these four states has not been reopened. The final voter lists of the five states—Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Nagaland—will be published on November 30.
Voters' rights are related to Form 6, 7 and 8.
During the SIR process, eligible citizens can fill Form-6 to get their name included in the voter list. Form-7 is used for objection related to deletion of a name and Form-8 is used for amendment in name, address or other details. The Commission has also directed the states to give wide publicity to the new dates under the revised schedule, so that eligible voters can register their claims and objections within the stipulated time.
After 47.56 lakh names were removed from the draft voter list in Delhi, 2,75,856 Form-6 applications were received till October 28. In such a situation, increasing the deadline will provide additional opportunity to those people who could not complete the process of including their names in the list or filing objections related to it.