Guwahati, Aug 11 : Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday claimed that names of deceased people and those who reside elsewhere are found on voters’ lists in riverine areas and several other places in the state, even though 100 per cent polling is reported from these localities.
He asserted that a special intensive revision (SIR) can remove such anomalies in the electoral rolls.
Sarma also slammed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for opposing the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, where assembly elections are due later this year.
“You all know that in Assam, whether it be in ‘char’ (sandbar) or other places, the voter list is filled with names of deceased people. Names of married daughters are not deleted. And yet, 100 per cent polling happens in those places,” Sarma said on the sidelines of a programme in Chirang.
“When SIR is conducted and names on a voter list are tallied with Aadhaar numbers, these problems will be sorted out,” he claimed.
Asked about Gandhi opposing the special intensive revision in Bihar, Sarma said, “He is not clear about what he wants.”
The CM said the Congress leader should tell the Election Commission to revise the voter lists and link electors’ names with their Aadhaar numbers so that a person cannot vote at two places.
“But he is not interested in it…If the voter lists are so erroneous, how did you win in Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana? Earlier, you blamed EVMs; now, the voter list is your new ammunition,” Sarma said, pointing to Gandhi. (PTI)