Thane Collector Warns Of Criminal Action Over Irregularities As Bhiwandi Hosts Review Of Special Voter List Revision Drive

Bhiwandi: With Maharashtra's ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls gathering pace, Thane District Collector Dr. Shrikrishna Panchal on Friday chaired a comprehensive review meeting in Bhiwandi to assess the progress of the voter verification campaign and issued a stern warning that any irregularities in the distribution or handling of voter application forms would invite criminal action.

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The review meeting, held at the Bhiwandi Nizampur City Municipal Corporation (BNCMC) headquarters, was attended by Electoral Registration Officers, Assistant Electoral Registration Officers and senior field officials from the Bhiwandi East, Bhiwandi West, Bhiwandi Rural and Shahapur Assembly constituencies. Later in the evening, the Collector also interacted with representatives of various political parties, urging them to actively participate in creating public awareness and ensuring maximum voter participation in the revision exercise.

During the meeting, political party representatives highlighted several practical difficulties being faced during the implementation of the Special Intensive Revision programme. Collector Panchal assured them that all genuine concerns would be addressed while ensuring strict compliance with the Election Commission's guidelines.

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BNCMC Commissioner Anmol Sagar, Sub-Divisional Officer Amit Sanap, and several senior administrative officers were present during the review. The political parties' meeting was attended by BJP city president Ravi Sawant, BJP group leader Santosh Shetty, Shiv Sena (UBT) Thane Rural district president Kundan Patil, Manoj Gage, Ward Committee Chairman Adv. Vaibhav Bhoir, BJP rural functionary P.K. Mhatre, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena city chief Manoj Gulve, Shyam Agrawal, Pradeep Bodke, Gajendra Gulve, and other party representatives.

Reviewing the field-level implementation, Dr. Panchal assessed the performance of officials supervising Booth Level Officers (BLOs), who are currently conducting door-to-door verification of voters by distributing application forms and collecting the completed documents from eligible electors.

He noted that the campaign initially progressed slowly due to continuous rainfall and waterlogging in several parts of the district. However, the pace of work has improved significantly since July 9, and officials have been directed to ensure that the entire exercise is completed strictly in accordance with the Election Commission's prescribed procedures.

The Collector also took serious note of complaints alleging that, in some places, voter application forms were being kept at political party offices or had gone missing. He clarified that BLOs have been instructed to hand over the forms directly to individual voters, assist them in filling them wherever necessary, and collect them personally.

"If any irregularity, manipulation or mishandling of application forms is detected, criminal proceedings will be initiated against the persons responsible," Dr. Panchal warned.

He further appealed to all political parties to nominate booth-level representatives to assist the administration in the revision process. According to the Collector, the response from political parties has been encouraging and will help improve transparency and coordination during the campaign.

Addressing party representatives, Dr. Panchal urged them to spread awareness about the voter list revision programme and appoint authorised representatives at every polling booth. Any objections or discrepancies in the electoral rolls, he said, should be immediately brought to the notice of election officials at the local level to ensure prompt rectification.

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He also appealed to citizens to cooperate with the campaign by completing and submitting the prescribed forms. Special arrangements, he added, have been made for persons with disabilities, with BLOs visiting their residences to facilitate the process so that no eligible voter faces inconvenience.

To strengthen the field machinery, the district administration will appoint Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA workers), Anganwadi workers, and other government employees as Assistant Booth Level Officers. In Thane district's six municipal corporations, ASHA and Anganwadi workers assigned to the voter revision drive will receive an additional honorarium of ₹4,000, to be paid by the respective municipal corporations. The Collector said Anganwadi workers across all municipal areas of the district are already actively supporting the campaign.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Kundan Patil, Thane Rural district president of Shiv Sena (UBT), described the voter list revision exercise as an important initiative that could help cleanse the electoral rolls. However, he argued that unless Aadhaar is linked with the voter database, the entire exercise would remain incomplete.

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Patil alleged that if the government and the Election Commission are unwilling to link Aadhaar with electoral rolls, the revision exercise risks becoming a mere formality rather than a meaningful reform. He claimed that this demand is supported by representatives of almost all political parties.

He also demanded that elections to Gram Panchayats, Panchayat Samitis and Zilla Parishads should not be conducted until the Special Intensive Revision process is fully completed, saying the integrity of the electoral rolls must be ensured before any local body polls are held.

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