'Parties should appoint more booth agents': ECI sources on Bihar electoral roll revision; 'They should not complain later'

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has urged political parties to appoint more booth level agents (BLAs) for the poll panel's ongoing special intensive process for electoral roll revision in Bihar, according to sources.The parties should not complain later, they said."They should appoint more BLAs now rather than complaining later," the sources told news agency ANI.According to the ECI sources, the Bihar drive is proceeding "smoothly as planned," strictly following the orders issued on June 24.The massive exercise involves nearly one lakh trained booth level officers (BLOs) and an equal number of volunteers, coordinated by 243 electoral registration officers, 38 district election officers, nine divisional commissioners, and the chief electoral officer of the poll-bound state.Also Read | Bihar voter list row: Why EC’s special revision is facing political heat - explainedWhile national and state political parties registered and recognised by the ECI have already engaged more than 1.5 lakh BLAs across polling stations, the sources indicate there is still time for the parties to appoint additional BLAs.ECI defers meeting with multi-party delegationMeanwhile, the Election Commission has deferred a scheduled meeting with a multi-party delegation regarding the SIR process citing a lack of confirmation from the participating political parties.

The meeting, initially scheduled by ECI for Wednesday at 5 PM, was requested by the Congress on June 30. The Congress legal counsel had sought an urgent appointment, representing himself as counsel for the multi-party delegation.Following standard procedure, the Commission contacted relevant political parties to confirm their participation. However, as of Tuesday, no confirmation had been received from any of the parties, leading to the meeting's deferral.Chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has repeatedly emphasised that the SIR initiative aims to prevent "illegible" voters from casting ballot, and to ensure no eligible citizen is excluded from the voter list ahead of the Bihar assembly polls.