Daijiworld Media Network - Lucknow
Lucknow, Oct 20: Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Navdeep Rinwa's office has acknowledged that repeated applications by the same voter can lead to the generation of multiple Electors Photo Identity Cards (EPICs), while asserting that periodic checks are conducted to remove duplicate entries from electoral rolls.
The clarification came on social media platform X after fact-checker Mohammed Zubair highlighted a case in which a voter, whose name was allegedly missing from the draft electoral roll, submitted multiple applications and received more than one voter ID card.
The CEO's office disputed Zubair's account but acknowledged that multiple EPICs could be generated if an individual submitted multiple forms. It said deduplication was being carried out periodically through the ECINET platform, while efforts were under way to identify repeated applications at the submission stage itself.
“We are on the path to achieving the objective of catching multiple forms submitted by an individual at the submission stage only,” the CEO's office said, expressing confidence that the system would be implemented soon.
Meanwhile, Rinwa held a virtual meeting with district election officials, including electoral registration officers, on Monday to review the removal of duplicate entries and preparations for a special campaign day scheduled for October 24.
According to an official statement, Rinwa directed officials to prioritise identifying duplicate entries arising from multiple applications submitted during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
He instructed Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to identify such voters and ensure that cases were resolved promptly by having the concerned individuals fill out Form 7 in accordance with the rules.
The CEO emphasised that duplicate entries must be addressed on priority to ensure that the draft electoral roll scheduled for publication on November 12, 2026, is accurate and free of errors.
He also noted that many eligible citizens were yet to be included in the electoral roll and directed field officials to conduct a comprehensive awareness campaign to encourage their registration.