Did the Election Commission Serve Hearing Notice to Trinamool's Samirul Islam?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- The ECI is actively addressing discrepancies in the voters’ list.
- Samirul Islam is required to attend a hearing on January 19.
- This situation reflects the ongoing scrutiny of voter registration processes in India.
- Political figures are urged to engage responsibly with electoral processes.
- Valid identity documents are crucial for participation in electoral hearings.
Kolkata, Jan 15 (NationPress) The Election Commission of India (ECI) has recently issued a hearing notice to Samirul Islam, a member of the Rajya Sabha representing the Trinamool Congress, regarding claims and objections on the draft voters’ list in West Bengal.
It has come to light that this notice was prompted by a case of “logical discrepancy”, arising from inconsistencies in the names of Samirul Islam and his father in the current voters’ list compared to the last revision conducted in 2002.
Islam is required to attend the hearing scheduled for January 19. His voting constituency is the Hansan Assembly in the Birbhum district of West Bengal.
He has acknowledged receiving the hearing notice.
Samirul Islam marks the second instance of a Trinamool Congress MP receiving such a notice.
In a prior occurrence, a similar notice was sent to Dipak Adhikari, also known as Dev, a three-term Lok Sabha MP from the Ghatal constituency in West Midnapore. He attended his hearing a few days earlier and appealed to the ECI for greater empathy towards voters, particularly senior citizens.
Additionally, the ECI informed the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in West Bengal that admit cards for the secondary examination conducted by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Examination (WBBSE) will not be recognized as valid identity proof for those summoned for hearings, whether classified as “Unmapped” or “logical discrepancy” cases.
An insider from the CEO’s office stated that while the Madhyamik pass-out certificate is among the 13 documents recognized by the Election Commission as valid ID, the admit cards do not hold the same status.
Recently, the CEO’s office proposed to the ECI’s headquarters in New Delhi regarding the acceptability of the Madhyamik admit card as a valid identity document. However, the ECI clarified that it will not be deemed a valid identity document.