Suspension of two officials ordered after voter found with multiple ID cards

Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Kaul has directed to suspend two poll officials after a voter in Beypore of Kozhikode district was found to have got three voter ID cards.

A release said on Tuesday that Kozhikode District Collector Snehil Kumar Singh had been asked to take action against one electoral registration officer (ERO) and a boothlevel officer (BLO). A showcause notice had been issued to Mr. Singh as well. Shahir Shahul Hameed, native of Beypore, was

afound to have applied for a voter ID card on September 23 and December 1, 2023, even as he already had another card. In the first instance, he had produced his Aadhaar card and later his passport as ID proofs. On both occasions, he claimed in an affidavit that his name had not been included previously on the voters’ list. Both the officials examined the documents and certified that he could be issued voter ID cards again. Their suspension is based on provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. Cases would be registered against them under Section 32 of the Act. The punishment can be a minimum of three months or up to two years in jail. Cases would be registered against Mr. Hameed as well. He may get a punishment of up to an year in jail. Mr. Kaul said that instructions had been issued to District Collectors, EROs and BLOs to check if people had illegally managed to get ID cards.

District Congress Committee president K. Praveenkumar claimed that the incident had proved the allegation that many voters had managed to get multiple ID cards with the help of the CPI(M).