Page 2 - Chief Election Commissioner

Bengal CEO holds internal talks ahead of Election Commission meet in Delhi

In the run-up to a crucial meeting with Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar next week, West Bengal CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal is set to hold internal discussions with officials concerned on the state's electoral preparedness on Saturday and Monday, a source in the poll panel said. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has "shown interest in replicating" Bihar's special intensive revision of electoral rolls in other states and the proactive steps are being viewed as "introductions to electoral readiness", he said. "The execution of the special intensive revision (SIR) in Bihar has garnered nationwide attention, with other states reportedly looking to learn from its approach. "Ahead of the Delhi meeting, the CEO's office is organising two rounds of consultations focused on the SIR and electoral preparedness. The first of these meetings will be an internal review on Saturday and then a comprehensive statewide assessment on Monday," the source told PTI. During these sessions, ...

AI, deepfakes real challenges before election commission: CEC Gyanesh Kumar

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday said artificial intelligence and deepfakes pose a real challenge for the poll panel, which will try its best to tackle them within the framework of law. He also indicated that machine-readable electoral rolls could result in breach of voters' privacy. Addressing a press conference here, Kumar said, "Artificial Intelligence (AI) and deepfakes are indeed real challenges for us. Just yesterday, an X handle had shared an AI-generated video that was far from truth." "The Election Commission will try its best to tackle such challenges, but it can only operate within the framework of the law," the chief election commissioner said. On the opposition demand for machine-readable electoral rolls, Kumar said the Supreme Court has already given a judgment in this regard in 2019. "The Supreme Court has already said in 2019 that it can result in a breach of voters' privacy," he said. Kumar added that a few days ago, photos of several voters we

Give affidavit or apologise: CEC Gyanesh Kumar hits back at Rahul Gandhi

The remarks by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) came on a day when Gandhi-led opposition launched the 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar and stepped up attack against the Special Intensive Revision

Voter list in machine-readable form can't be shared: CEC cites SC order

Citing a 2019 Supreme Court judgment, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday said that the voter list in machine-readable format cannot be shared with political parties. He also said there was a difference between machine-readable and searchable formats. Addressing a press conference here, Kumar said that the voter list available on its website can be searched using a voter card number and can also be downloaded. He said the machine-readable format is barred as it can be edited and can lead to its misuse. The Congress has been demanding the voter list in machine-readable format, saying it will help it flag flaws. The CEC said that in 2019, the top court had sided with its stand that a machine-readable format cannot be shared as it could compromise voters' privacy. Officials pointed out that the issue was already raised by the Congress before the Supreme Court in a writ petition in 2018 filed by Kamal Nath, the then president of the Madhya Pradesh Congress ...

EC can't discriminate among political parties: CEC on voter fraud charge

CEC Gyanesh Kumar said only those whose names are in the voter list cast their votes to elect their candidate

Rahul Gandhi warns EC over voter list changes: 'We are coming for you'

Congress leader accuses EC of voter roll tampering in Bihar and Karnataka, warns of consequences as opposition protests continue over Special Intensive Revision

'Can't allow dead, migrants, or duplicates on voter rolls', says CEC Kumar

On the face of criticism from Opposition over Bihar voter roll revision, Chief Election Commissioner said that the EC cannot allow names of the deceased and migrants to remain on the voters list

CEC stays firm amid political storm over Bihar electoral roll revision

Ever since CEC Gyanesh Kumar-led poll body has taken up the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, the 61-year-old ex-bureaucrat is in the line of fire of the Opposition parties

CEC Kumar thanks Bihar voters for cleaning up exercise of electoral roll

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar thanked the eligible voters of Bihar on Wednesday for their active participation in the "much-needed" cleaning of the electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). Kumar's remarks came in the backdrop of the Supreme Court hearing a clutch of pleas questioning the intent behind the SIR ahead of the Assembly polls in the state later this year. Opposition parties have asserted that the ongoing exercise will disfranchise crores of eligible Indian citizens for the want of citizenship documents. "I thank all eligible electors of Bihar for actively participating in the much-needed cleaning of the electoral rolls," the CEC told a group of booth-level officers during a training session here. Separately, the Election Commission said only 6.85 per cent of the 7.9 crore voters are yet to fill the enumeration forms under the SIR. "As on today, 6,99,92,926 of the existing electors have given their enumeration form to be included in

Tender committee set up to evaluate contracts related to election processes

The Maharashtra government has constituted a Tender Evaluation Committee for services under the Representation of the People Act 1950. As per a government resolution (GR) issued on July 4, the panel has been formed to ensure transparency and efficiency in the evaluation of bids for services done through the office of the Chief Electoral Officer. The decision, which was taken on June 17 and formalized through the GR, aligns with the administrative procedures mandated under the Act and aims to streamline the technical scrutiny process for contracts associated with electoral processes, officials said. The GR, published on the state government's official portal, outlines the committee's mandate to evaluate the eligibility and compliance of various service providers participating in the bidding process. "The aim is to establish a fair and methodical evaluation of bids to ensure services like updating electoral rolls are procured through a transparent and competent process," the GR ...

Special Intensive Revision in Bihar 'on schedule', says CEC Gyanesh Kumar

The Special Intensive Revision is a focused voter list update exercise conducted by the Election Commission of India to ensure electoral rolls are accurate ahead of upcoming elections

Election Commission initiates proceedings to delist 345 RUPPs across India

It has come to the notice of the Commission that of the over 2,800 RUPPs currently registered with ECI, many RUPPs have failed to fulfil the essential conditions required to continue as an RUPP

Electoral rolls prep in India one of world's most rigorous exercise: CEC

Preparation of electoral rolls in India is one of the world's most rigorous and transparent exercises, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has said before an international audience amid allegations of fudging in voter data. Electoral rolls are shared with recognised national and state parties in accordance with law every year during revision as well as before the elections, Kumar said in his keynote address at the Stockholm International Conference on Electoral Integrity on Tuesday. The CEC said the rolls have been shared with recognised political parties since 1960 with provision of claims, objections and appeals. The remarks come close on the heels of opposition parties, including Congress, alleging fudging of voter data to rig elections. The poll authority has dubbed these charges as absurd. Addressing the event, Kumar said preparation of voters list is one of the world's most rigorous and transparent exercises, reinforcing the accuracy and integrity of the electoral ...

Aadhaar sharing for voters to remain voluntary; no legal changes planned

As the Election Commission works to purify electoral rolls of duplicate entries, sources in the government asserted on Tuesday that Aadhaar sharing by voters on a voluntary basis as prescribed in the law will remain unaltered. They underlined that sharing Aadhaar details with poll authorities is voluntary under the Election Laws (Amendment) Act, 2021 and it will continue to remain so. The sources also noted that there is no plan to tweak the law or related rules in this regard. They were responding to questions on whether there was a proposal to make Aadhaar sharing compulsory as also whether voters who don't share details will have to explain before poll authorities the reasons for not giving out details. They said the ground rules will remain unaltered and no provision is proposed to be added as of now. Amid a debate on the purity of electoral rolls, the Election Commission had said last month that the regular updating process of the voter list will be strengthened in close ...

Some use religion to 'push hateful politics': SY Quraishi slams BJP's Dubey

Former CEC SY Quraishi's comments came in response to BJP MP Nishikant Dubey's remarks, in which he called Quraishi a 'Muslim commissioner' for criticising the controversial Waqf Act

'Election Commission in India compromised': LoP Rahul Gandhi in Boston

Rahul Gandhi is currently on a US tour where he addressed the Indian diaspora in Boston. He will also address a gathering at Brown University on Monday

BJP's Nishikant Dubey targets former CEC, calls him a 'Muslim commissioner'

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey's remarks came in response to a post in which former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi called the Waqf Amendment Act an "evil plan of the government"

EVMs in country absolutely safe, not being tampered with: CEC Gyanesh Kumar

CEC stated that wherever democracy was present, electoral rolls and election processes were different, and in some countries, electronic voting systems were used

EC holds nearly 5K meets with political representatives at various levels

Seeking to resolve the issues of political parties, the Election Commission has held nearly 5,000 meetings with their representatives at different levels across the country. In a span of 25 days, a total of 4,719 meetings were held, including 40 by state chief electoral officers (CEOs), 800 by district election officers, and 3,879 by electoral registration officers. The process involved engagements with over 28,000 representatives of political parties nationwide, the Election Commission (EC) said on Tuesday. The decision to hold the meetings was taken at a recent conference of CEOs held here. The engagements were aimed to resolve any pending issues by the concerned competent authority at different levels. An action taken report has been sought from all the states for further assessment. Any issue, if unresolved within the existing legal framework, will be taken up by the poll panel.

Voter list updates to be strengthened with birth, death records: EC

Amid a debate on the purity of electoral rolls, the Election Commission said on Thursday that the regular updating process of the voter list will be strengthened in close coordination with the birth and death registration authorities. Technical consultations between the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and experts of the EC will begin soon on voter list-Aadhaar linkage, it said, adding that though an elector can only vote in the assigned polling booth and nowhere else, the poll body has resolved to remove duplicates countrywide and end a decades-long issue within three months. "Regular updation of the voter list shall be strengthened in close coordination with the birth and death registration authorities," the EC said in a statement. In the EC's interactions with political parties, it was clarified that any inclusion or deletion in the draft elector list is governed by the process of appeals under relevant legal provisions for filing claims and objections available t