Telangana SIR Faces Form 7 Controversy
Election officials have raised concerns over unsigned and pre-printed voter-deletion applications allegedly being submitted in bulk during the electoral-roll revision.
The Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Telangana has come under fresh scrutiny after election officials raised concerns over the submission of Form 7 applications without the signatures of the purported applicants. Form 7 is used to object to the inclusion of an elector or seek deletion of an existing entry from the electoral roll.
The latest concerns emerged in Hyderabad, where pre-printed Form 7 applications have reportedly been brought to Booth Level Officers during the claims and objections stage. Officials have stressed that such applications must follow the prescribed procedure and be properly verified before any voter can be removed from the electoral roll.
In Goshamahal, Electoral Registration Officer Uma Prakash reportedly warned political parties against pressuring Booth Level Officers to accept bulk applications. The warning followed an instance in which a booth-level agent was reported to have brought around 180 applications to a BLO.
Election officials have said that simply submitting forms is not enough to remove a voter. Deletion requests require verification of the stated grounds, such as death, permanent migration or another valid reason. Officials may conduct field verification before deciding whether an entry should be deleted.
The controversy follows an earlier incident in Musheerabad in which a BJP booth-level agent was accused of submitting pre-printed Form 7 applications seeking deletion of 30 voters. A preliminary field verification reportedly found that the voters continued to reside at the addresses recorded in the electoral rolls.
The Telangana Chief Electoral Officer has directed election authorities to take action against applicants who knowingly provide false statements or declarations in electoral forms. Officials have also said that bulk Form 7 applications will be subjected to inquiry and verification before any decision is taken.
The issue has triggered political allegations in Telangana, with the Congress seeking a criminal investigation into the alleged misuse of Form 7 applications. The BJP has rejected allegations of an organised attempt to delete genuine voters, while election authorities have maintained that applications will be processed according to the prescribed verification procedure.
The controversy comes as Telangana processes a large number of Form 7 applications during the SIR exercise. The Election Commission has emphasised that no voter should be removed solely on the basis of an unverified or improperly submitted application, making field-level scrutiny a key part of the ongoing process.