Mangaluru: The Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has triggered a different kind of political mobilisation within the Karnataka Congress. Encouraged by what party leaders describe as their successful handling of a similar exercise in Kerala, the Congress is putting in place a booth-level strategy aimed at ensuring that no genuine voter is left out while closely monitoring every stage of the revision process.
The Block Level Officers (BLOs) will start door to door visits with enumeration forms from June 30.
The Congress in Karnataka is preparing to engage with the exercise at the grassroots. KPCC president BK Hariprsad has made it clear that the Congress is not opposed to the revision itself. Instead, the party wants to ensure that no eligible voter is deleted from the electoral rolls while keeping a close watch on what the party fears could be attempts to introduce duplicate, fake or ghost entries.
The Congress strategy rests on organisational preparedness rather than political confrontation. Borrowing from its Kerala experience, the party plans to strengthen its network of Booth Level Agents (BLA-1 and BLA-2), assist voters in securing the documents required during verification, closely scrutinise the draft electoral rolls and extend assistance wherever genuine voters are excluded.
Congress leaders believe Karnataka is better placed to implement this strategy than Kerala because the party is in power in the state.
The first phase of the exercise by the Congress has already begun with awareness programmes in places like Mangaluru and Hubballi. They will be held in Bengaluru and Kalaburagi also.
KPCC president BK Hariprasad and the party’s SIR committee chairman Sudarshan have been touring these districts to brief local leaders and workers, who will, in turn, take the campaign to the booth.
The exercise goes beyond awareness campaigns. Party workers are also being trained to understand the verification process, identify possible deletions and monitor fresh additions to the electoral rolls.
A major focus of the Congress strategy is strengthening its network of Booth Level Agents, particularly BLA-2s, whom the party considers its frontline force during the SIR exercise. During his recent visits to Dakshina Kannada and Dharwad, Hariprasad stressed the need to appoint BLA-2 workers, saying they would play a decisive role during the revision.
Drawing from his experience in Kerala, MLC and AICC secretary (Kerala in-charge) PV Mohan said the effectiveness of BLA-2 workers had played a major role during the revision exercise there.
“In Kerala we motivated BLA-2s because they are the frontline soldiers. Each booth has around 300 houses and BLA-2s ensured that no eligible voter was left out. They also kept a close watch to prevent duplicate and ghost entries,” Mohan told Deccan Chronicle.
Documentation has emerged as another key focus area.
Party workers have been instructed to help voters obtain birth certificates, school records, caste certificates and other documents that may be sought by Booth Level Officers during door-to-door verification, in cases where voters have not been mapped.
According to Congress leaders, lack of documentation is often what prevents genuine voters from finding a place on the rolls, especially those from economically weaker sections. With government offices expected to witness heavy footfall during the SIR exercise, workers have been asked to assist people in securing the required documents.
The party also has decided to closely examine the draft electoral rolls once they are published. Booth-level workers have been instructed to verify the list, identify voters whose names are missing and visit their homes to ascertain whether genuine electors have been left out. If required, the party intends to help such voters both in securing the necessary documents and pursuing legal remedies.
There is also discussion within the Congress to have legal experts available in every Assembly constituency so that voters facing disputes over inclusion in the electoral rolls can receive immediate assistance.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
