CEC-Kerala refutes Sunil Kumar’s allegations of voter fraud in 2024 LS elections 

Chief Electoral Officer, Kerala, Retan Kelkar’s office on Friday issued a clarification concerning the accusations made by V.S. Sunil Kumar, candidate of the CPI in the 2024 Lok Sabha General Elections, before the media on Thursday, regarding alleged irregularities in the voters’ list used for the Thrissur Lok Sabha Constituency.

As part of the Special Summary Revision of the electoral roll conducted ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the draft electoral roll was published on October 27, 2023, and copies were provided free of cost to all recognised political parties.

Between October 27, 2023 and December 9, 2023, a total of 45,924 Form-6 applications (inclusion of names) were received in Thrissur Lok Sabha Constituency, of which 42,807 were accepted and 3,117 rejected.

During the same period, 25,194 Form-7 applications (deletion of names) were received, of which 24,472 were accepted and 722 rejected. Additionally, 14,068 Form-8 applications (corrections) were received, of which 13,264 were accepted and 804 rejected.

All claims and objections within the stipulated period were duly examined and disposed of by the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs). The final electoral roll was published on January 22, 2024 and copies were again provided free of cost to all recognised political parties.

The actions taken by the EROs on claims and objections were displayed on the notice board and on the website of the Chief Electoral Officer on a weekly basis. Information about such publications was communicated to recognised political parties in their representatives’ meetings, and also publicised through the press. No appeals were received by the District Election Officer (DEO) regarding the actions of the EROs during this period.

Following the publication of the final roll, continuous updation was undertaken until the deadline prescribed for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Between December 10, 2023 and March 25, 2024, a total of 73,731 Form-6 applications were received, of which 67,670 were accepted and 6,061 rejected.

Between December 10, 2023 and March 16, 2024, a total of 25,264 Form-7 applications were received, of which 22,061 were accepted and 3,203 rejected. During the same period, 26,948 Form-8 applications were received, of which 25,351 were accepted and 1,597 rejected.

Upon completion of this process, the electoral roll for use in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections was published on April 4, 2024. No appeals regarding the actions of the EROs were received by the DEO during this period as well. Copies of the roll were once again provided free of cost to all recognised political parties.

The preparation of the electoral roll for Thrissur Lok Sabha Constituency was carried out strictly in accordance with the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 and the instructions of the Election Commission of India, within the prescribed timelines. At every stage of the revision, meetings were convened under the chairmanship of the DEO with the participation of the Electoral Roll Observer, EROs and authorised political party representatives to share and review details. Booth-level meetings were also held with Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and Booth Level Agents (BLAs).

During the elections, the official contact numbers of the General Observer, Police Observer, and Expenditure Observer appointed by the Election Commission were made available to the public and political parties. Meetings with authorised political party representatives and agents of candidates were also held under the chairmanship of the Observers. At no stage were any complaints related to the voters’ list raised. 

The Chief Electoral Officer stated that during the election scrutiny meeting held after the polls, chaired by the General Observer, neither the candidate nor the election agent raised any concerns regarding the voters’ list. He further emphasised that any objections to the election process should have been brought before the High Court through an election petition within the prescribed time frame under the law.