Uttar Pradesh removes six election officials after Azamgarh voter list duplication uncovered

Five Booth Level Officers and a computer assistant were removed from election duties by the Chief Electoral Officer of Uttar Pradesh after a probe into voter list irregularities in Azamgarh. The Samajwadi Party had earlier claimed on Oct 15 that a voter named Vikas Yadav was listed ten times in the Azamgarh assembly constituency. The district election officer’s investigation found the name appearing thirteen times in Hindi on the rolls. One entry belonged to a different voter of the same name and age from Chauri Chaura in Gorakhpur district, and two duplicate entries are being deleted. The remaining eleven entries were linked to eleven distinct individuals living in Azamgarh; officials corrected the details of ten of them using Form‑8, leaving only the genuine Vikas Yadav on the list under that name. In response, the CEO ordered the immediate removal of the responsible computer assistant and the five BLOs, and issued termination notices. Charge sheets and departmental action have also been filed against the former Electoral Registration Officer and two Assistant Electoral Registration Officers for negligence, citing Section 32 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. The district election officer has been tasked with reviewing voter lists across all Azamgarh assembly constituencies and submitting a report within a week.

Context

Accurate voter rolls are essential for fair elections; duplicate entries can cause confusion, affect voter confidence, and lead to legal challenges. The Representation of the People Act provides mechanisms to hold election officials accountable for such lapses.