‘False Figures Being Spread’: ECI Counters Chidambaram’s ‘Absurd’ Migrant Voter Allegation
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has hit back at senior Congress leader P Chidambaram’s claims regarding the “inclusion of migrant voters” in Tamil Nadu, stating that the numbers being quoted are incorrect and misleading.
This response from the poll panel comes after Chidambaram criticised the ECI over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, and questioned how the commission determined that several lakh voters in Bihar had “permanently migrated”, leading to the “removal” of their names from the voter list.
He also alleged that migrant labourers were being registered as voters in Tamil Nadu. “While 65 lakh voters face the threat of being disenfranchised in Bihar, the reports of ‘adding’ 6.5 lakh people as voters in Tamil Nadu are disturbing and clearly unlawful. Referring to them as ‘permanently migrated’ is an insult to migrant workers and a major interference in Tamil Nadu’s electorate’s right to choose its own government,” he wrote on X.
“To qualify for voter registration, a person must have a fixed and permanent legal residence. Migrant workers have that in Bihar (or another state). How can they be enrolled as voters in Tamil Nadu?” Chidambaram asked.
‘Absurd and Misleading’
In a fact-check post on X, the Election Commission said such remarks are false and lack basis. “Political leaders should refrain from spreading misinformation about the SIR process being conducted by the ECI at the national level,” it stated.
“It has come to the Commission’s attention that such misleading claims are being deliberately circulated in the media to obstruct the ongoing process. With regard to voters who have permanently relocated from Bihar to other states and are ordinarily residing in those states, the actual numbers can only be ascertained after the SIR is completed.”
The ECI noted that “false figures are being spread” regarding the registration of 6.5 lakh voters in Tamil Nadu. “SIR has not yet commenced in Tamil Nadu. Hence, linking the SIR exercise in Bihar with Tamil Nadu is absurd. Spreading such baseless claims about the SIR should be avoided,” it added.
The Commission also clarified that a person originally from Tamil Nadu but ordinarily residing in Delhi is eligible to be registered as a voter in Delhi under Section 19(b) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
Amidst allegations regarding the removal of names from the electoral rolls in Bihar, the ECI on Sunday stated that not a single complaint or objection has been filed by any political party since the release of the draft voter list on August 1.
The opposition has been staging protests in both Houses of Parliament against the SIR exercise, accusing the ECI of trying to “disenfranchise voters” in Bihar before the Assembly polls. They have also demanded a debate on the matter in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
