Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 12: Allaying apprehensions of the voters whose names do not figure in summery voter lists, R S Jamwal Joint Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation and Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) for JMC elections to be held in the month of May has appealed the voters to fill up the objection and correction forms as early as possible so that the necessary corrections can be made by the stipulated time.
Admitting that there are some discrepancies in voter lists Jamwal said that the summary electoral rolls will be reviewed and updated after receiving the objections and corrections from the voters are received. This process will continue up to March 28, he added.
He said the people need not to worry as every voter residing in the Municipal Wards of JMC will be included in voter list provided he or she fills up the correction form. He said the present electoral rolls for 2016 JMC elections for 71 Wards which are in circulation are made on the basis of Assembly elections while every person who is residing in any Municipal Ward owning a house having water and power connection is entitled to vote in Corporation elections no doubt he is the voter of any other Assembly segment which does not fall in municipal limits.
The voters have to file objections from March 9 to 18 and from March 18 to 23 incorporations will be made which will be followed by publishing of final electoral rolls by March 31, said Ranjit Singh secretary JMC and ERO.
Meanwhile, there is a general public resentment among the masses over the voters’ lists saying that as per 2012 voter lists of JMC half of the voters in newly created nine Wards are missing. Not only, this but the name of a former Corporator and another contesting candidate also do not figure in voter list of Ward 64 of JMC.
Moreover the present voter list for Ward 64 comprising of Durga Nagar, Roop Nagar, Swaran Vihar, Rajinder Nagar depicts 1/4th of the voter lists shown in the electoral roll of 2012.
As per the voter list of 2012 there were 5569 votes in Ward 64 which has been reduced only to 1267 votes now. Besides, having seven polling booths in previous election this time only one polling booth has been kept in the entire Ward 64.
Same has been the position in other newly created eight wards where not only the number of voters has been reduced to half but the number of polling booths have also been decreased.
Challenging the authenticity of voter lists former Corporator and BJP district president Omi Khajuria said the voter lists were revised number of times since 2010 and every time corrections were made in them. The concerned authorities instead of publishing the electoral rolls on the basis of that have framed it on the basis of Assembly elections which indicate their malicious intensions.
Same views were expressed by Sheela Handoo former Corporator and National Executive Member Mahila Morcha BJP. She said the necessary corrections be made in the voter lists immediately so that the names of genuine voters are included.
Khajuria and Handoo wanted to know that on whose directives the names of those voters were deleted who had exercised their franchise in last elections. Terming it a conspiracy they said that in case of any delay the BJP will be forced to come to streets.
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