ECI suspends 2 electoral officers over voter roll irregularities in UP

New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has ordered the immediate suspension of two electoral registration officers in Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit constituency over alleged manipulation of voter records and directed authorities to strengthen the criminal case against them.

The officers, Mayank Goswami and Hemant Chaudhary, have also been barred from resuming their duties without the Commission's prior clearance. The ECI has asked the state authorities to submit their charge sheets for examination.

In a letter dated October 31 to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer, the Commission instructed officials to incorporate Section 198 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, into the existing FIR against the two officers and Anil Kumar, a computer operator at the Voter Registration Centre.

The Commission has also directed the District Election Officer in Pilibhit to review electoral rolls across all four Assembly constituencies in the district and submit a detailed report within a week.

A separate report on action taken against the computer operator and the roles of five Assistant Electoral Registration Officers has been sought within three days.

Extending its scrutiny statewide, the ECI has asked election officials across Uttar Pradesh to recheck voter list entries, particularly additions, deletions and corrections processed through Forms 6, 7 and 8.

With IANS inputs