Kerala: Poll officials suspended after three voter ID cards issued to single voter in Beypore

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], March 13 (ANI): Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Kerala Chief Electoral Officer has ordered the suspension of two poll officials after a voter in Beypore town of Kozhikode district was found with three voter identity cards.

The Kozhikode District Collector has been directed to suspend one Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) and one booth level officer.

This decision comes in the wake of the discovery of three voter ID cards issued to a single individual in Beypore.

The individual in question, Shahir Shahul Hameed, a resident of Beypore, was found to possess three separate voter ID cards. Shahir, who had a voter ID card, submitted his application two more times (on September 23 and December 1, 2023) and received the additional cards.

Shockingly, each application was accompanied by different identification documents – Aadhaar for the first, and Passport for the second.

Furthermore, it was disclosed that Hameed had declared his name to be absent from the voter list in his applications.

As a result, one Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) and one booth level officer have been suspended by the Kozhikode District Collector under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, in accordance with directives from the Chief Electoral Officer.

Additionally, the individual found in possession of the duplicate voter ID cards may face imprisonment of up to one year under the same Act.

A show cause notice was issued to the Kozhikode Collector, demanding an explanation for the lapses in oversight.

Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Kaul said that after preparing the draft voter list, all District Collectors have been directed to carry out strict examination through EROs and BLOs to find out whether names have been added to the voter list by submitting false applications in the same manner.