Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari raised concerns that 5% of government-appointed Booth Level Officers (BLOs) involved in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in the state are allegedly influenced by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Patwari accused these BLOs of removing names of tribal Congress supporters who had migrated for work from the voter list. He warned of legal action against BLOs removing Congress supporters’ names at BJP’s behest.
Patwari, alongside State’s Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar, highlighted that while 95 BLOs are working diligently in the SIR exercise, 5% are allegedly acting as agents of the BJP. The Congress party also pointed out irregularities in the electoral rolls prepared by the Election Commission, alleging pressure on BLOs to exclude Congress supporters’ names due to a supposed BJP conspiracy.
More than 65,000 BLOs, including state government employees like teachers and municipal officials, are part of the SIR exercise in Madhya Pradesh. In a separate development, Singhar wrote to the state’s Chief Electoral Officer expressing concerns over discrepancies and lack of transparency in the SIR of electoral rolls. He highlighted system-generated issues like multiple children listed, father’s name inconsistencies, and age disparities affecting millions of voters, causing confusion and fear.
