Delhi Congress Flags Unauthorised Form 8 Filing, Missing Voters in Draft Rolls

The Delhi Congress on Thursday demanded a detailed inquiry into the alleged unauthorised filing of Form 8 in the name of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president Devender Yadav during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that no action had been taken on his complaint so far.

The demand was raised at a meeting convened by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Delhi, where Congress representatives also flagged alleged discrepancies in the draft electoral rolls.

Advocate Sunil Kumar, chairman of the Delhi Congress's legal department, said Yadav had lodged complaints with the CEO and Delhi Police on October 6, claiming that he had neither submitted the online Form 8 himself nor authorised anyone to file it on his behalf. Form 8 is used by registered voters to make corrections or changes to their Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) details. Kumar demanded a comprehensive investigation and action against those responsible for the alleged unauthorised submission.

The Delhi CEO's office said it had initiated an inquiry following receipt of the complaint. Officials said the complainant's identity could not be established from the application alone, as an OTP is sent to the registered mobile number during submission. The office said it would attempt to trace the ID used to file the application to identify the person responsible.

The Congress also alleged that several eligible voters were missing from the draft electoral rolls despite having submitted their enumeration forms and received acknowledgements from booth-level officers (BLOs).

Party representatives claimed that some such voters had been categorised as 'EF Refused', indicating that they had declined to submit enumeration forms, even though the forms had reportedly been received and signed by BLOs.

The party demanded that these voters be included in the draft rolls without unnecessary formalities or fresh applications through Form 6, which is used to seek inclusion in electoral rolls. The Congress also called for effective measures to ensure that homeless citizens are included in voter lists, stressing that no eligible voter should lose voting rights due to procedural lapses.