EC issues guidelines to ensure genuine electors able to cast vote without voter I card

Representation image. Pic/Shadab Khan

To ensure that no genuine voter is deprived of the right to vote, the Election Commission (EC) of India has told state electoral officers to ignore clerical or spelling mistakes, provided the voter's identity can be established through the voter I-card.

In an order issued last month, the EC said the electors who are not able to produce their voter I-card will have to furnish one of the alternative photo identity documents for establishing their identity

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It has also said that a voter I-card issued by the electoral registration officer of another assembly constituency will be accepted for identification provided the voter's name is in the electoral sheets of the polling station where he or she has turned up. In case of photograph mismatch, the voter can produce one of the alternative photo documents listed out by the EC.

The documents the voters can produce at the polling station in case of mismatch includes Aadhaar card, PAN card, driving license, MNREGA job card, bank or post office passbooks with photograph, health insurance smart card issued by the Labour Ministry and the smart card issued by the Registrar General of India under National Population Register (NPR).

Other documents which are accepted at the polling station in case of mismatch in photograph identity of the voter are: Indian passport, pension document with photograph, service I-cards with photograph issued to employees by central, state governments or PSUs, official identity cards issued to MPs, MLAs and MLCs, and Unique Disability I-card issued by the ministry of Social Justice.

However, oversees Indians who are registered voters on the basis of their Indian passports, will be identified at the polling station only by their original passport and by any other identity document.

(With inputs from PTI)