Pilibhit Voter List Controversy: EC Suspends 2 Poll Officials Over 10,470 Irregular Entries, Orders Statewide Roll Audit

Pilibhit Voter List Controversy: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday directed the immediate suspension of two Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) over alleged irregularities in 10,470 voter entries in the Pilibhit assembly constituency.

In an order to UP Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Navdeep Rinwa and the State Chief Secretary, the Commission directed that EROs Mayank Goswami and Hemant Chaudhary be suspended with immediate effect. The poll panel said that their chargesheets be submitted for panel vetting and that neither officer be reinstated without its approval.

Inquiry Uncovers 10,470 Voter Entries In Pilibhit

The action follows an investigation that uncovered that computer operator Anil Kumar entered 13,779 Form-8 applications seeking modifications to voter details on the portal between May 31 and August 29, 2026. Out of these entries, 10,470 were approved while 3,309 were rejected. However, no application forms or supporting documents were found in the office.

The issue came to light after multiple voters reported having identical Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) numbers.

Poll Body Directs Adding BNS Charges To FIR

The Election Commission instructed authorities to add Section 198 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which penalises a public servant disobeying the law with intent to cause injury, to the FIR already registered against the two officers and the computer operator. Legal proceedings under Section 32 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and relevant provisions of the BNS are already underway, with the ECI asking authorities to pursue the cases rigorously in court.

Deactivation Of Login IDs Of Computer Assistants

Following the controversy, Rinwa directed all district election officers to deactivate the login IDs of computer assistants working at voter registration centres across the state and directed the concerned firm to terminate the outsourced operator's contract.

The ECI has sought action-taken reports regarding Anil Kumar and five Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) within three days, as well as an electoral roll scrutiny report for all four assembly constituencies in Pilibhit district within a week. Additionally, all District Election Officers across Uttar Pradesh have been instructed to conduct a thorough review of voter list changes processed under Forms 6 (additions), 7 (deletions), and 8 (modifications).

(With Inputs From Jagran.com And PTI)