Sorry! SIR everywhere, but zing among voters is missing
As the Special Intensive Revision nears its August 3 deadline, migrant and neutral voters allege inadequate support from political parties, while BLAs say they remain the forgotten foot soldiers of the electoral process
Hyderabad: While political parties and their leaders usually reach out to voters living in different places during elections and seek their support, several voters have alleged that the same level of outreach is missing during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, which is scheduled to conclude on August 3.
Voters living away from their native places also said they were not receiving assistance from political parties or BLAs. A voter named Shankar (names changed) from Karimnagar district, currently residing in Hyderabad, said he had received calls from political parties during elections but had not been contacted by any party representative regarding the SIR process.
Uneducated Ramulu from Adilabad district living in Hyderabad said that he is yet to complete the SIR process.
“I do not know who my Booth Level Officer is or whether my family members’ names are present in the 2002 voter list.
I may have to spend money to travel to my village and to complete the process,” he said.
However, most political parties have been relying on their Booth Level Agents (BLAs) to assist voters in completing the SIR process. However, some voters claim that BLAs are focusing mainly on helping identified party supporters fill out their SIR forms, while neutral voters are being neglected. In some areas, the BLAs are not even assisting their party supporters. In some areas, party leaders have reportedly not been actively involved in the process.
However, some voters said they received assistance through party networks. Krishna from Nalgonda district, who supports the ruling Congress, said he was contacted by his party and completed the SIR process with the help of a local BLA without travelling to his village.
Meanwhile, Vijay from Khammam said he visited his village to complete the SIR process, fearing that his vote could be affected as a neutral voter. He said he had been voting in every election and wanted to ensure that his name remained on the electoral roll. He alleged that political leaders had tried many times to remove his vote, suspecting him to be from a rival party.
“I am neutral. I used to cast my vote for a good leader irrespective of his political affiliation. However, these days it is difficult to remain neutral. Every political party treats a neutral voter as an enemy,” he said.
Meanwhile, a BRS BLA from the Old City expressed a different view, saying many grassroots workers feel neglected by their respective parties. He alleged that while senior leaders gain positions and power, BLAs continue to work without any recognition or benefits.
“I am working because of my attachment to the party. Leaders enjoy the benefits, while we remain as BLAs. They remember us mainly during elections and processes like SIR,” he said. Several BLAs from different political parties expressed similar concerns, stating that they carry the BLA tag but do not receive any benefits from their parties despite their continued involvement in party activities.
