Goa SIR: 88 of 97 left-out voters re-included after Form 6; 3 of remaining 9 hold Portuguese passports

The chief electoral officer (CEO) of Goa on Thursday confirmed that 88 out of 97 voters who were excluded from the final electoral roll following the special intensive revision exercise despite being eligible have been re-included as fresh voters after they submitted Form 6.

The CEO’s office in a statement said that of the remaining nine voters, three have been found to be Portuguese passport holders, while six are currently residing abroad.

“Out of the 97 left-out voters, 88 have filled Form 6, which have been accepted,” the statement said.

Also read: 'How does your system override law?': HC asks ECI over 7 voter deletions in Goa

Officials seek contact with voters living abroad

“In respect of the voters who are currently residing outside India, the concerned officials are making efforts to establish and maintain contact with them for further necessary action.”

Goa CEO Sanjay Goel also announced the commencement of a “special drive” for the enrolment of left-out and young first-time voters.

“The drive will focus on facilitating the enrolment of left-out eligible citizens as well as young and first-time eligible electors who have not yet been included in the electoral roll. The exercise will be undertaken as part of the process of continuous updation of electoral rolls through house-to-house visits of the BLOs,” the statement said.

Also read: At the heart of SIR controversy, ECI’s software for officers | What we know about ERONET

Controversy erupted over 97 excluded voters

An Indian Express investigation last month sparked a major controversy over the allegation that 97 verified voters could not be added to the Goa electoral roll because the software did not allow the update to be recorded.

The special intensive revision (SIR) exercise, which concluded with the publication of the final roll on February 21 this year, saw deletion of around 127,000 voters or about 10% of the state’s electorate faced a peculiar problem.