Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer S Chockalingam has directed poll officials to consider voter documents submitted through WhatsApp during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and asked Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to visit households for verification wherever necessary.

Under the arrangement, voters who receive notices generated through the ECINet software can respond by sending the required documents to their respective BLOs through WhatsApp, an official from the state election office said.

The BLOs have also been asked to visit the homes of voters when physical verification of the documents is considered necessary. The move is aimed at facilitating the verification process for electors who have received notices during the revision exercise.

BLOs to verify documents at homes if required

The Maharashtra election office said voters do not necessarily have to personally travel to election offices to submit documents in response to notices. BLOs can receive the documents through WhatsApp and, where required, visit the concerned households to verify them.

The Election Commission had earlier eased the hearing process in Maharashtra’s SIR exercise, with BLOs authorised to collect required documents from voters and upload them to the ECINET portal for consideration by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs). Personal hearings are generally not required when the documents are satisfactory, while hearings may be held in exceptional cases.

The arrangement is particularly relevant for voters whose entries have been flagged for unmapped records or logical discrepancies during the revision.

Maharashtra CEO seeks changes to ECINet

Chockalingam has also sought changes to the ECINet software to give EROs greater discretion in dealing with anomalies in electoral rolls.

The Maharashtra CEO’s office has raised concerns over whether the existing software provides EROs with all the options necessary to exercise their statutory powers. Chockalingam has sought changes that would allow EROs to take decisions in cases involving logical discrepancies and other issues based on the documents submitted by electors.

The issue has also become part of a wider debate over the role of EROs in the SIR process. The Opposition Congress has alleged that the statutory powers of EROs to determine voter eligibility were being diluted through the ECINet system.

The Election Commission, however, has said that its decisions relating to the SIR exercise were taken unanimously by the three-member commission. The poll body has also announced a review of the ECINet system following concerns raised about its functioning.

Claims and objections deadline extended

The Election Commission has extended the deadline for filing claims and objections to Maharashtra’s draft electoral rolls from September 30 to October 12.

The period for issuing and disposing of notices, claims and objections has been extended to November 10, while the final electoral roll is now scheduled to be published on November 16.

The extension followed a request from the Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer amid the large number of cases being processed during the SIR exercise.

According to the revised schedule, the qualifying date for the electoral roll remains October 1, 2026. The final publication was earlier scheduled for November 4 but has now been moved to November 16.

Focus on voter verification

The latest directions provide voters who have received notices another route to submit documents without necessarily appearing personally before election officials.

The use of WhatsApp for receiving documents, combined with home verification by BLOs where required, is part of the measures being implemented as Maharashtra processes claims, objections and notices under the ongoing SIR exercise.

The final electoral roll will be published after the disposal of the notices, claims and objections according to the revised schedule.