Voters’ list inquiry begins as tension mounts

The inquiry was marked on the basis of a complaint of MC contesting candidate and former MC president Amritpal Singh. In his complaint to the Election Commission, Amrit Pal Singh alleged that the district authority had submitted a supplementary list constituting about 850 new voters by deleting an equal number of old members from different wards of the township who have been casting their votes over the years.

When a CN team visited the Dera Bassi council office to take stock of situation, heated arguments between the Inquiry-cum-Returning Officer and Amrit Pal Singh over the refusal by the former to record the complainants’ statement were taking place.

On seeing the photographer and the reporter in the room, the Returning-cum-Inquiry Officer, Nasib Singh, became infuriated and asked security officials, “How have the media people entered into the inquiry room without my permission ?” Later, he ordered the media people to vacate the premises without assigning any reason.

Meanwhile, a large number of people gathered before the Council office and raised slogans demanding withdrawal of a supplementary list for the forthcoming MC elections.

An inquiry from Sumtri, who has been residing in the township since the township came into being, revealed that the names of the three members of her family were missing from the fresh list.

This was not an isolated case. An another resident of the ward number 12, Nathu Raj, was among hundreds of people who alleged that their names were deleted from the new voters’ list by the authority to appease the ruling SAD-BJP combine. Balak Ram, Sikander Singh and Ravinder Kumar of the township came forward with similar complaints.