EC Must Clear the Air on Surge in Electors

A more broad-based selection panel for CEC will create greater confidence, says former EC Ashok Lavasa

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Former Election Commissioner (EC) Ashok Lavasa speaks to Preetha Nair about the current controversy on Epic duplication and says the only document available to weed it out is the unique identification number. Excerpts:

What's view on the row over duplicate Election Photo Identity cards? We have to look at it from two different points of view. The complaint that has been filed concerns people having the same Epic number, that is, more than one person having the same Epic number. The Election Commission has also acknowledged that the problem exists and is trying to resolve it. It is a welcome sign, and the issue should not be politicised.

The other issue is de-duplication, which the EC has been attempting for a long time. One problem is one person having one Epic number registering himself in more than one place, and the other is two people having the same Epic number. We need to believe what the CEC has said that they will try to ensure that every voter has a unique Epic number.

ECI said it's a legacy issue. How can it be addressed? The ECI is right. Earlier, the electoral registration system was with the state chief electoral officers and district electoral officers. Now, the electoral roll database of states and UTs has been shifted to the integrated ERONET platform.

ERONET requires every state to have a different series. However, regarding the de-duplication issue, the EC has to devise a mechanism to identify which elector is registering at more than one place.

The ECI is set to link the voter ID card with Aadhaar. This is at variance with its earlier position that linkage could be optional.