EC drops micro observer, who himself verified names, from final list

Rajat Banerjee, a micro observer appointed by the Election Commission of India to verify doubtful voters, was shocked to find that his name has been deleted from the final voters’ list that was declared on 28 February.

Banerjee, a resident of Baidyadanga in Memari of East Burdwan, works with the Life Insurance Corporation in Malda and was assigned to Uluberia East Assembly constituency to serve as a micro observer. He claims he’s being penalised for doing his job, saying: “The Commission gave me the task of verifying suspicious voters, and now they’ve deleted my name as a reward.”

Advertisement

His name was removed from the final SIR list, affecting not just him but his family too. Banerjee said he had uploaded his passport online, but it wasn’t enough.

In East Burdwan district, the names of 17,984 voters were removed from the final list, and 3,53,608 are under adjudicational review. Banerjee’s case is included in this. He was asked to appear for a hearing due to an age discrepancy with his grandmother, listed as his guardian.

Other than his passport, Banerjee had submitted his LIC ID as well. But his name was still deleted from the voter list. The Commission or any of its senior officials, however, are yet to comment on this matter.