Staff Reporter
Guwahati: Prior to the Special Revision (SR) of photo electoral rolls in Assam, a question hangs over the fate of D-voters. This question has arisen as SR is being held in the state for the first time, unlike the Special Summary Revision (SSR) and Special Intensive Revision (SIR) conducted earlier by the Election Commission of India (ECI).
The category of ‘D’ (Doubtful) voters was introduced in Assam in 1997 by the ECI during an intensive revision of the state’s electoral rolls. The “D” mark was placed against the names of electors who were unable to provide sufficient evidence to prove their Indian citizenship status at the time of verification.
Currently, there are 94,277 D-voters in the state.
Sources from the Election Department, Assam, stated that the status quo of the D-voters will be maintained in the state. Cases regarding their citizenship are ongoing at the different Foreigners Tribunals (FTs). In the event of an FT declaring any D-voter as an Indian citizen, his or her ‘D’ tag will be removed. In case of a D-voter being adjudged a non-Indian, the name of that particular person will be deleted from the electoral roll, and the government will take follow-up action, as per the law.
Also Read: Problem of D voters in Assam will be solved by SC and Centre: Dass