Congress alleges Form 7 misuse to delete voters in Uttarakhand

The Uttarakhand Congress has approached the Election Commission alleging large-scale misuse of Form 7 to remove voters' names during the ongoing special intensive revision of electoral rolls. The party claims applications for name deletions have been filed in significant numbers, especially in constituencies where the Congress has influence.

Congress leader Amrinder Bisht alleged that a single individual filed objections against approximately 6,400 names, and about 1,200 individuals submitted more than 10 objections each. An objection was also filed against a sitting Congress MLA. The party also flagged 1.02 lakh voters in Udham Singh Nagar district marked as 'suspicious' under Demographically Similar Entries or Photo Similar Entries, and said political parties were not given adequate information about them.

The BJP's Vinod Chamoli responded that objections were also raised against BJP names, including his own, and said the mere filing of an objection does not remove a voter, the individual gets a chance to present their case. The CEO assured the delegation the revision is being conducted strictly by rules, with nine senior officers deployed as observers. The Congress has threatened to take to the streets and approach court in the first week of September if its grievances are not addressed.