The Election Commission of India (ECI) has stated that during the hearing sessions on claims and objections regarding the draft voters’ list in West Bengal, alternatives to the specified “land or house allotment certificates” will not be accepted as valid identity documents. The sessions for this purpose began on Saturday. Among the 13 documents specified by the Commission, “any land/house allotment certificate by the Government” holds the 11th position.
Insiders from the Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office in West Bengal have highlighted that the system for uploading identity documents in the Commission’s database is designed to only accept the Commission-specified “any land/house allotment certificate by Government.” Therefore, certificates like those issued under the state-owned housing finance scheme “Banglar Bari” will not be considered valid automatically. According to the CEO’s office insider, the ECI’s 11th document requires identification of a specific plot of land or house allotted to the voter, which is not met by the “Banglar Bari” scheme.
The CEO’s office insider further explained that the “Banglar Bari” scheme is primarily a housing finance scheme where the recipient uses the funds to buy and construct a house, without specifying ownership of a particular plot or house. This distinction is crucial as the ECI does not equate a housing finance certificate with a land or house allotment certificate. The hearing sessions on claims and objections began on December 27, with the final voters’ list scheduled for publication on February 14 next year. Subsequently, the ECI will announce the polling dates for the upcoming Assembly elections.
