CEO Seeks Guidance From ECI on FRCs

Hyderabad:Chief Electoral Officer C. Sudarshan Reddy has reportedly decided to seek ‘clarification’ from the Election Commission of India (ECI) on the Telangana government’s decision to issue Family Registration Certificates (FRC) to ration card holders during the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state.

According to official sources, the state government’s decision to issue FRC is likely to be challenged in the courts on various technical grounds. To avoid future controversies, Sudarshan Reddy decided to write to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, seeking guidance on the issue.

While the Telangana government’s decision to issue FRC was inspired by the Karnataka government’s Permanent Residence Certificate (PRC), sources said that Karnataka decided to issue the PRC before moving to the SIR phase, while Telangana’s decision came in the midst of SIR implementation.

“ECI has already extended the deadlines for various phases in Telangana. Compared to Karnataka, the decision to release the FRC was taken in the middle and when the Counting Phase was almost in the final stages,” a senior official said.

On Wednesday, authorities had digitized 76.28 per cent of the 2.58 crore census forms received in Telangana. However, Hyderabad remained below 55 per cent with only 25 lakh forms digitised.

Sources also said that the BJP was strongly opposed to the publication of FRCs and was pressuring the state poll authorities to take action. They said the BJP may challenge the state government’s decision on the FRC in court.

“We do not want to take any risks or leave room for discussions. Since CEC is the highest authority on the SIR issue, a clarification is sought at this point on whether FRCs will be issued or not. A response from ECI is expected by the end of this month,” the official said.

The BJP accused the state government of acting under pressure from the AIMIM and using the FRC to protect illegal vote banks during the ongoing SIR exercise. State BJP president N. Ramchander Rao alleged that the Congress government is trying to portray FRC as a valid document for ‘undocumented persons’.

During a video conference to review the progress of SIR exercise and the ongoing counting phase, Sudarshan Reddy said the SIR purge is aimed at creating an error-free voter list and has nothing to do with government plans.

Directed DEOs and EROs to ensure random audit of digitized Census Forms and timely resolution of discrepancies; Strengthen coordination between EROs, AEROs, BLO Controllers, BLOs and BLAs.

“Ensure comprehensive verification of ASDD (Absent, Shifted, Dead and Duplicate) lists and complete rationalization of polling stations where necessary, within stipulated timelines and in compliance with ECI guidelines,” he said, adding that they should focus on increasing the pace of digitization at polling centres.