What to Expect from SEC during Voter ID Card Verification?

Voter ID cards are issued under the supervision of the Election Commission of India (ECI) only after a voter has submitted the registration form along with some documents to the local Election Registration Officer (ERO). Today, online registration of electoral card is a successful way to register for a voter card, where the voters log in to their state’s election commission website and follow the instructions to register for a new voter card.

However, work is far from being over after this. The registration form needs to be verified and finally issued under the orders of the highest authority of ECI to the eligible voters.

In fact, distribution of photo ID card is also an important task conducted by ECI. In many cases, the ECI delegates the work to the respective State Election Commissioners (SEC). Here are some responsibilities of SEC in the following paragraphs.

SEC and Team under SEC

Although the elections are conducted under the ECI, the SEC is responsible primarily for elections of Panchayat, municipal, and various local bodies. This organization has been formed for each state as per our Constitution. The governor for each state elects the state election commissioner who is the head of the SEC. Subsequently, other officers are also selected and tasks are delegated.

There are many officers working under the SEC, such as District Election Officers, Block Election Officer, and Returning Officers. These officers help to maintain the electoral roll of the Panchayat and municipal elections. Though the SEC and ECI cater to different elections, common job work, such as preparation of election roll, verification and distribution of voter card, is done by both.

Electoral roll is every important part of voting. To get a name listed in an electoral roll, say, after you’ve changed your residence, you need to show your voter’s ID card. To get your voter card, it must be verified by ECI’s supervision. The SEC and its officers coordinate this work, so that voters are quickly given their ID cards.

Verification of Voter ID Card

Verification of the voter ID card registration is done by the ECI primarily with support from SEC. If you have submitted the form online, you can expect the verification team to arrive at your home within a month. If you have submitted hard copies of your credentials, the verification would be faster.

To address issues regarding verification, you should seek the help of the local Election Registration Officer (ERO). According to the rules, booth level officers (BLO) do the ground work for verification. They visit the applicant’s house, check the proof of residence. Documents are checked for age, relations, and number of members in the family.

In fact, if you need to change your surname or residence in case you have married, you need to show your marriage certificate. Students need to show a declaration from their college principal in case they want to change their address to their present place of residence – say, a hostel. In case you are working and have been transferred, you must provide a declaration from your superior that you have been transferred to pursue work commitments for changing the address. If there are no errors in the forms, the verification is over. You can expect the voter card to arrive soon.

Role of SEC on Voter ID Verification

The Chief Electoral Officers of the each state government is responsible for the election process of the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. The SEC looks after the activities related to Gram Panchayat, where delimitation of the seats or allocation of the same is done. However, SEC has the authority to work in collaboration with the ECI to execute the verification process of the election card and maintenance of the electoral roll.

So, next time you face issues regarding your voter card, say delay in distribution or verification, you know whom to address the problem.