Gurgaon: Rules have been eased for voters served notices during the first phase of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, with booth level officers (BLOs) now visiting colonies and societies to collect documents instead of residents having to attend hearings.A list of hearing venues where residents can submit their documents was earlier published by the administration. But the rules have been made more flexible for voters, who can now submit proofs to their respective BLOs either at the time of receiving the notice or at a convenient time in coordination with BLOs, said Sanjeev Singla, SDM-cum-election officer. The notices are typically delivered by a BLO or flagged directly on the official voter service portal. The last date for this phase of the exercise is Aug 30.Around 30% of the electorate has been struck off the rolls in the city. BLOs in Gurgaon had a tough time mapping voters and digitising enumeration forms because a large section of the population lives inside gated condominiums. Of 15.5 lakh registered voters before SIR, 4.5 lakh were struck off, 2.5 lakh were unmapped and 2.1 lakh had demographic anomalies.The process extends beyond those who have received notices. “People whose names have not appeared in the draft electoral roll for any reason can file claims for inclusion along with the required documents. Similarly, anyone seeking to challenge the inclusion of another person’s name can file an objection,” Singla said. Those who have recently turned 18 can also apply for inclusion by submitting the prescribed form and supporting documents.The draft electoral roll has three broad categories of voters: those mapped with the previous SIR (directly or through family members); unmapped voters; and voters whose records show logical discrepancies. Notices are being issued to the latter two categories.Unmapped voters — those whose current electoral records could not be linked to the previous database — must produce documents establishing identity, age and residence, wherever required. Officials clarified that Aadhaar can establish identity but cannot, by itself, serve as proof of age or residence during scrutiny. A list of acceptable documents has been put up. It includes birth certificate, passport and caste certificate.The administration has been coordinating with RWAs to organise camps at convenient times in societies, allowing notices to be served and documents collected together and reducing the need for separate visits to govt offices. Voters who prefer not to coordinate with BLOs can also submit documents at designated locations, including tehsil and SDM offices, block development and panchayat offices, and govt senior secondary schools linked to their polling stations.Statewide, about 33.8 lakh electors were left out of the draft roll after enumeration — categorised by officials as absent, shifted, deceased or already enrolled elsewhere — with Gurgaon accounting for the highest number in Haryana. “All these processes are going simultaneously and for all these purposes residents need to connect with BLOs,” Singla said.
