Floating Population Braces For Challenges During Verification

New Delhi: Ishaq Noori, a qawwal living in Uttam Nagar’s Bhagwati Vihar, is bracing for challenges ahead of the SIR rollout in Delhi.During a recent preparatory voter mapping, Noori’s name could not be verified. Though he is a registered voter and his name was in the electoral rolls in 2000, it was missing from the 2002 rolls. Noori, who had migrated from UP, said he is having to look for documents to get his name verified even though he has been living in Bhagwati Vihar for decades.In areas like Sangam Vihar, Seelampur, Burari and Uttam Nagar, which have a large migrant population, several others like Noori whose names were missing from the 2002 list are worried ahead of the verification, which is set to begin on June 30.The last such exercise in the capital was carried out in 2008.The latest one is likely to put the spotlight on one of Delhi’s least documented but politically significant populations — migrant and rental voters. The city’s electorate is unusually fluid, shaped by lakhs of Purvanchali migrants, students, domestic workers, construction labourers, jhuggi residents and young professionals who frequently change addresses or live in informal housing arrangements.A Delhi election panel official said the 13 indicative documents required for the verification of such people include Aadhaar card, birth certificate, passport, matriculation certificate, permanent resident certificate, caste certificate and land or house allotment certificate issued by govt.Sanjay Kumar, a migrant from Bihar who lives in Seelampur’s Ajit Nagar, said his parents are not registered voters in Bihar because they passed away in 2000. “I am a carpenter, and I am away from home almost every day. I don’t know how I will prove my eligibility. I am still trying to figure a way out,” said Kumar.Delhi currently has around 1.5 crore registered voters, up from 1.47 crore in 2020. The official said that the poll panel has already mapped around 40% of existing voters by matching both the 2002 and 2025 electoral rolls. The preparatory work has been completed, and in the coming weeks, a series of meetings are likely to be held in the run-up to the launch of the SIR.Shabir Ali, a resident of Azadpur, said the nearby Bharola village has a large presence of Purvanchali voters. “The village has around 45,000 voters, many of whom stay on rent without any formal rent agreements and keep shifting their addresses. Officials conducting SIR should consider these issues and ensure that eligible voters are not negatively affected during the exercise,” said Ali.Md Anish, who lives near the Shastri Park Buland Masjid, said SIR should be transparent and fair. “A girl from our neighbourhood whose parents are registered voters of the area has not been enrolled as a voter even though she submitted all proofs, including her parents’ voter card details,” he said.The official said the SIR aims to ensure that no eligible voter is left out while removing ineligible entries from electoral rolls. “Booth level officers (BLOs) will conduct house-to-house verification and distribute enumeration forms, which can also be filled online,” the official added.“If a BLO finds a house locked at the time of the enumeration, he will slip in the forms and make at least three visits to collect them after they are filled,” said the official, adding that each voter must submit the form along with requisite information and self-attested documents to the BLO when he again visits the house.