Advocates Prepare to Assist Voters During SIR Notices

Hyderabad: Advocates are gearing up to assist voters likely to receive verification notices under the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral roll, with more than 60.5 lakh voters across the state, including 6.72 lakh in Hyderabad, likely to receive notices from the Election Commission after the draft roll is released on August 17.

At the end of the enumeration phase, the number of voters with anomalies, or logical discrepancies, stood at 60,51,503. Hyderabad district recorded the highest number at 6,72,724, accounting for about 59 per cent of the 27.9 lakh votes digitised by August 10.

Electoral registration officers (EROs) will begin issuing notices to these voters as part of the scrutiny. The most common anomalies are believed to involve differences in the spelling of names and mismatches in surnames and the names of fathers or husbands.

Civil society groups have also begun preparations for the objections and suggestions stage, which starts on August 17. The AIMIM has deployed more than 250 advocates to assist voters, primarily in the Hyderabad parliamentary constituency. Legal experts from the Kolkata-based SABAR Institute are co-conducting training and sharing data insights and operational strategies based on their experience in West Bengal.

“In constituencies where we have our MLAs, the party is deploying 25 advocates each, while in those areas where the party has a sizable presence, we have engaged about 10. They will work under the direct supervision of senior party leaders. Our booth-level agents have some idea of how many voters will be receiving notices. The party will be holding a key meeting shortly to draw a strategy for the upcoming notice period,” AIMIM sources said.

“We have prepared around 60 advocates, of whom close to 45 are engaged in districts alone. They are trained to volunteer in the next crucial period of the SIR exercise,” said its Youth Welfare Telangana founder-president Syed Jalaluddin Zafar. Advocates in other areas are also offering free assistance to voters.

“I am a professional, but since the SIR is an issue of serious concern covering maximum people, myself along with my team is offering free services,” said advocate D. Malik Basha of a law firm.

Advocate K. Karunakar, who is volunteering and drafting clarifications to notices for voters in Mancherial district, said he was preparing responses based on the common anomalies identified during earlier phases of the SIR in other parts of the country.

"The way notices are replied to is the key, and for giving clarification on behalf of those who received notice, I am preparing a draft towards ensuring the voter does not lose his or her valuable vote," Karunakar explained.

Advocate Pawan Kumar, who is working in localities around Vijaynagar Colony, said the exercise was a new experience in his two years in the profession.

"This is a rare opportunity for me to help out people, particularly the underprivileged who are on the edge of losing their votes. As you know those with anomalies receive notices and here is what the actual work begins, particularly as it involves documentation to defend one's vote. Given the experience of voters in other states, I want to ensure those eligible in Hyderabad do not lose their votes," Pawan Kumar said.