EC offers SIR relief, says kin can appear for outstation voters; hearings in Bengal will have to be completed by Feb 8 | India News

KOLKATA: In a major relief to thousands of migrant workers, students and NRIs summoned for physical SIR hearings, Election Commission on Wednesday said relatives of electors who live outside Bengal can appear for hearings on their behalf.Hearings for 94.5 lakh voters with logical discrepancies, which will begin on Thursday, will have to be completed by February 8. While the hearing of unmapped voters is underway, EC released on BLO App the list of people to be summoned to clarify their ‘logical discrepancies’, including progeny mapping. “From Thursday onwards, BLOs will receive the hard copies of the hearing notices, which they will have to deliver to the houses of the persons concerned,” said an EC official, a day after the commission gave relief to over 41.5 lakh voters with minor discrepancies in electoral rolls.EC will also launch an online portal with secure video links to enable online hearings. The portal will also have an e-verification tab for online submission of hearing-related documents. EC, however, did not provide a timeline for the launch. Implementation details and eligibility criteria will be notified on the EC’s portal (https://ceowestbengal.wb.gov.in/) soon, an official said.Trinamool Congress and Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee have repeatedly flagged the issue of outstation electors being asked to personally appear for hearings. The party has told EC that when the country’s top courts can conduct hearings online, why can’t EC do so. Trinamool also cited this in its plea filed in SC on Tuesday.Bengal has over 23 lakh registered migrant workers, a large number of whom have been summoned for SIR hearings, as have thousands of NRIs and students whose SIR enumeration forms were filled up by their parents or other family members.EC officials said the latest initiative is aimed at easing the logistic burden on voters displaced due to work or living abroad and to ensure broader participation in the ongoing SIR process. “Our priority is inclusivity without compromising verification integrity,” an official said.