Youth Franchise: 208,000 First-Time Voters Registered in Delhi's Electoral Rolls
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New Delhi, January 7 (NationPress) There are 208,000 first-time voters in the age group of 18-19 in Delhi, with 52,554 added to the electoral rolls after the draft was released on October 10, 2024, as stated by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Tuesday.
The Election Commission reported that among Delhi's 70 constituencies, there are 58 general and 12 reserved for Scheduled Castes, spanning across 11 districts. The total voter count includes 8.349 million male voters, 7.174 million female voters, and 2.589 million young voters, contributing to an overall total of 15.5 million voters.
Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer R. Alice Vaz noted that since the draft electoral roll's publication, approximately 167,000 voters have been added to the rolls.
The CEO praised election officials for their dedication in addressing claims and objections regarding voter name inclusions and deletions that arose after the November 28, 2024, cut-off date.
The team successfully adhered to the December 24 deadline while managing claims and objections received post the cut-off.
“The total number of additions from draft to final publication is 308,942, while deletions stand at 141,613, resulting in a net increase of 167,329 voters during this timeframe,” the CEO stated.
Additionally, a hard copy and a soft copy (without images) of the draft electoral roll were provided at no charge to all six recognized political parties on the day of the draft's release, October 29, 2024.
A meeting was convened with political parties at both CEO and DEO levels to encourage their involvement in the Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls and the appointment of Booth Level Agents.
During the claims and objections period from October 29, 2024, to November 28, 2024, a total of 135,089 Form-6, 69,177 Form-7, and 83,825 Form-8 were submitted in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
The CEO urged voters in Delhi to ensure their names are not listed on the electoral roll in more than one constituency or more than once in any constituency.
“This constitutes a punishable offense under Sections 17 and 18 of the Representation of People Act, 1950,” he advised, encouraging voters to utilize Form-7 for removing duplicate entries.
The election office indicated there are a total of 13,033 polling stations in the national capital, including 70 managed by PwD and 70 by women.
Furthermore, the poll panel highlighted the availability of the Saksham App for PwD voters, Home Voting options for senior citizens, and the CVIGIL platform for addressing complaints.
The term for the current Delhi Assembly concludes on February 23, necessitating that the entire election process be completed beforehand.
