One of the special roll observers overseeing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) discovered an unusual case where a Muslim youth was inaccurately linked in “progeny mapping” to a Hindu senior citizen as his father. This peculiar family connection was noticed during the super-checking phase of the draft voters’ list in the Panskura (Paschim) Assembly constituency in West Midnapore district, West Bengal. The special roll observer raised concerns about the lack of proper background verification before such linkages were approved by the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO).
Sources from the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, revealed that the special roll observer intends to escalate this matter to the Election Commission of India (ECI) in New Delhi for further action. The case highlighted the necessity of thorough background checks when establishing family links during the revision process. The CEO’s office emphasized that while it is not impossible for a father and son to have different religions, proper verification procedures were not followed in this instance.
Instances of peculiar family-tree data during “progeny mapping” have been observed before by the commission. In a previous case, a 65-year-old voter was listed as having two sons, aged 60 and 59, raising questions about the accuracy of the data. Such anomalies underscore the importance of ensuring the accuracy and integrity of voter records during the electoral process.
