Duplication of voter card numbers: ECI says it should replace its system

Amid stories flagging issuance of similar voter card numbers to electors in two completely different states, the Election Fee of India (ECI) on Sunday mentioned it should rectify the problem and in addition replace its technology-driven platform.

The ballot panel additionally asserted that duplicate numbers don’t essentially suggest faux voters.

It mentioned whereas the elector picture identification card (EPIC) numbers of a few of the voters “could also be similar”, the opposite particulars, together with demographic particulars, meeting constituency and polling sales space, are completely different.

“Regardless of the EPIC quantity, any elector can forged a vote solely at their designated polling station of their respective constituency of their state or Union territory the place they’re enrolled within the electoral roll and nowhere else,” the ballot panel mentioned.

It defined that similar EPIC numbers or collection had been allotted to some electors from completely different states and Union Territories because of a “decentralised and handbook mechanism” being adopted previous to shifting of the electoral roll database of all states to the ERONET (Electoral Roll Administration) platform.

This resulted in sure state chief electoral officers utilizing the identical EPIC alpha-numeric collection and leaving a scope for the potential for duplicate EPIC numbers being allotted to electors in numerous meeting constituencies in numerous states, the ballot physique mentioned.

In accordance with the ECI web site, ERONET helps election officers keep the electoral system “by eradicating duplicate entries and inclusion of migrated electors”.