Shail Samachar Newspaper

शिमला/शैल। नगर निगम शिमला के नये हाऊस का गठन चार जून तक होना है। इसके लिये निगम के चुनाव मई माह मे होने आवश्यक है। इस दिशा में जिला प्रषासन ने इसके लिये ड्राफट मतदाता सूचियां जारी कर दी हैं। ग्याहर अप्रैल को जारी हुई सूचियों पर दस दिन तक आपतियां दर्ज करवा कर इन्हें संशोधित करवाया जा सकता है। ड्राफट मतदाता सूचियों का अभिप्रायः ही यह होता है कि इनमें कुछ त्रुटियां हो सकती हैं। इस नाते इन सूचियों में गल्तीयां होना संभव है। लेकिन जिस पैमाने पर यह कमीयां सामने आयी हैं उससे निश्चित रूप से जिला प्रशासन की कार्य प्रणाली पर सवाल उठना स्वाभाविक है और इस दिशा में भाजपा और वाम दलों सहित समूचे विपक्ष ने इन सूचियों पर आपति उठायी है। क्योंकि भारी संख्या में मतदाताओं के नाम इनमें गायब पाये गये हैं यहां तक की कई मौजूदा पार्षदों तक के नाम गायब हैं। मतदाता सूचियां तैयार करना जिला प्रशासन का काम है और चुनाव करवाना राज्य निर्वाचन आयोग की जिम्मेदारी है। अब इन सूचियों  में पायी गयी कमीयों को लेकर महापौर और उपमहापौर ने एक विस्तृत पत्र राज्य चुनाव आयुक्त को भेजा है।
दस दिन के भीतर इन सूचियों पर कितनी आपतियां आती है और उन पर जिला प्रशासन कितना जल्दी कारवाई करके इनको ठीक करता है इसका पता तो आने वाले दिनों में ही लगेगा। लेकिन वामपंथी मेयर और डिटी मेयर ने इसकेे लिये एक माह के अतिरिक्त समय की मांग की है। एक माह के समय की मांग का अर्थ है कि यह चुनाव तय वक्त पर हो पाना संभव नही है और इन्हें आगे सरका दिया जाना चाहिये। पिछले नगर निगम चुनावों के बाद प्रदेश विधानसभा के चुनाव हुए थे। उसके बाद मई 2014 में लोकसभा के चुनाव हुए। हर चुनाव से पहले मतदाता सूचियां संशोधित की जाती हैं। ऐसे में 2014 के बाद कितने नये मतदाता हुए हैं इसका आकलन करना कोई कठिन नही था। यदि 2014 की ही सूची को यथास्थिति जारी कर दिया जाता तो भी इतनी गड़बड़ न होती। लेकिन जो सूची जारी हुई है उसमें पिछले किसी भी चुनाव को आधार नही बनाया गया है। इससे जिला प्रशासन की नीयत और नीति दोनों पर सवाल उठना स्वाभाविक है।
लेकिन इसी के साथ एक महत्वपूर्ण सवाल यह है कि इस बार निगम चुनावों के लिये इसके वार्डों का पुनर्गठन किया गया है। पहले वार्डों की संख्या 25 थी जिसे बढ़ाकर अब 34 कर दिया गया है। इस बढ़ौत्तरी का तर्क यही था कि अब नगर निगम क्षेत्र में मतदाताओं की संख्या बढ़ गयी है। सूत्रों के मुताबिक प्रत्येक वार्ड में औसतन तीन हजार से साढ़े तीन हजार मतदाताओं की संख्या मानी गयी थी। वार्डों का पुनर्गठन भी जिला प्रशासन और सरकार के बीच विचार विमर्श के बाद किया गया था। इस विचार विमर्श में राज्य चुनाव आयोग को शामिल ही नहीं किया गया था। शिमला नगर निगम की जनसंख्या और क्षेत्रफल चण्डीगढ़ से कहीं कम हैं। लेकिन चण्डीगढ़ नगर निगम में वार्डों की संख्या शिमला से कहीं कम है। ऐसे में सवाल यह भी उठता है कि यहां वार्डों की संख्या क्यों बढ़ायी गयी और इस पर सारे राजनीतिक दलों ने कारगर विरोध क्यों नही किया।

राज्य चुनाव आयोग को भेजा महापौर और उप महापौर का पत्र-

Dear Sh P Mitra ji,

Hope this letter of ours finds you in good mood and health.
We are writing this letter to you both as the elected representatives of the city and as citizens who are completely perturbed the way and manner in which the electoral rolls for Shimla Municipal Corporation elections have been drawn. The rolls are a complete mess. More than half the population have been left out. Not more than 0.5% young voters find space in the rolls. Age group from 18 to 22 are completely missing. Seems no revision of the electoral rolls have been done.
Those who were less than 18 years during the last elections should have been incorporated but since no exercise in this regard has been done, this group is left out. Similarly, there is utter confusion over the boundaries of the wards and incorporation of the voters.
It is quite funny that not one but a large number of elected representatives are missed out and some are finding their place in other wards where they have never stayed in their lifetimes. We have done a cursory exercise, though it is difficult for both of us to go through the entire voter list and would like to present concrete cases from Kaithu, Totu, Majath and Summer hill wards which speaks about the generality of the methodology adopted and the procedure done for preparation of these electoral rolls. And as we have mentioned there is utter chaos and more chaos. Similar trend is found in other wards as well.
It is in this background that we want you to intervene and direct the electoral officer to conduct fresh survey and revision of the electoral rolls in the entire Municipal region. Appropriate time period of not less than one month should be given for this exercise.
Here are the concrete discrepancies: –
In Majath ward which is number 7 and which has been carved out from Totu ward.
23 and 24 Surender Ramola reside in Boileauganj ward and is an employee of Indian Institute of Advanced Studies.
29 to over 50 such numbers all from Boileauganj ward .
69 already mentions the address as Kamna Devi which is in Boileauganj ward.
165 Haneef runs a shop near Boileauganj police station and resides there.
166 Naresh Sharma works in HP High Court resides next to Masjid Boileauganj. Hence wrong admission.
Apparently all the 327 voters in this ward are not from Majath area but from Boileauganj ward. This Majath ward should have more than 2000 voters.
Note: – Hence it is not possible to carve a new ward without conducting door to door exercise which requires ample time . The entire list has to be shifted to another ward.
Summer Hill ward No. 5.
In 5/2 No 93 to 95 all of them reside in Bharari ward.
There are over 5 girls hostel but just one finds place that too very few in number. Hostels like NBH 1,2,3 etc are not included. Similarly hostels like Gargi , Reneka etc are partially included. Surprisingly the list hardly contains voters less than 22 years of age.
Totu ward No 6
6/1 SNo. 9 Sh Bhagwati Prasad Sharma is an advocate in HP High Court and president of the Bar association, resides in Kusumpti ward. Similarly, SNo 10 and 11.
121-123 Kusum Thakur happens to be the councillor in the present MC from Kusumpti ward. She too finds her place in Totu.
34 Dhara Saraswati works in Doordarshan Kendra and has her residence in Main Bazar Kusumpti.
158 KN Gupta died 10 years ago.
SNo 467 to 471, the residents have left long back as their building was demolished .
SNo 485 died long back.
6/2 Sno. 47 , 48 Madan Chauhan from Anji village Chotta Shimla. Quite clearly mentioned in the voter list as well . Still finds place in Totu.
84 , 85 Gaurav Sud , works in SJVNL lives in Vikasnagar.
6/3 SNo 17-33 all the residents are from CHakkar ward though clearly mentioned in the voters list. Still in Totu.
SNo 105-105 from Ghora Chowki from Kachi Ghati ward. Mentioned in the voters list.
108-110 Reside near Tenzin hospital Kusumpti as mentioned in the voters list. Still in Totu.
SNo 115-116 from Government Press colony which is in Chakkar ward, still in Totu.
SNo 152 -153, 194 to 213 all From Majath ward.
246 to 270 all from Majath ward.
SNo 325 Vidya Sagar retired from HPU from Majath ward.
Sno 361 and his family Dr Mast Ram Sharma retired principal from Sanskrit college , prominent Congress leader from Majath ward.
419 Nitya Nand Sharma retired from HPU , Majath ward.
SNo 424 -426 Kailash Verma , prominent journalist , Majath ward.
SNo 671 Nirmala Chauhan present councillor from Totu ward but after delimitation in Majath ward. Still in Totu.
6/4 SNo. Subhash Chand press reported Doordarshan lives in Khalini.
SNo 109 Prakash Chand from Majath ward.
SNo 345 died 10 years ago and SNo 346 , 347 reside in Chandigarh since last 15 years ; press correspondent with The Tribue.
Kaithu ward.
3/1 Prominent missing, Rakesh Singha ex MLA though his wife finds place. Tikender Singh Panwar, deputy Mayor.
In Hotels over 300 workmen who were there in the previous list are missing.
3/2 SNo 26-66 all from Totu ward. Prominent amongst them SNo 41 Dibeshwari Sud, principal of Shishu Shiksha Niketan school Totu. SNo 27 Daleep Kumar brother of the councillor form Totu.
3/4 SNo 53 Pratap Singh Panwar from Chakkar area of Boileauganj ward.
SNo 89-99 Chandla’s of Van Chum computers from Chakkar area.
SNo 119 to 122 leading sports shop owner Amit Sports Totu.
124 Ramesh Chand Xen PWD Totu.
127 Harish Julka works in AG office resides in Lower Totu. In fact, the Radha Swami satsang takes place at his residence.
130 Chiranjee Lal Kashyap former MLA from Kusumpti lives in Totu.
SNo 140 to 174 from Totu ward.
SNo 176 Sanjay Gupta Executive Engineer with PWD Shimla circle lives in Chakkar.
SNo 228 to 255 all from Lower Totu.
Dear Mitra ji, what we have been able to decipher is just a tip of the iceberg lying underneath. There is complete chaos and mess up with the electoral rolls. Hence we request you to intervene immediately so that the mess can be cleared and the onus of correction is not transferred onto the people. This is the job of the electoral officers.
It is in this background that we have written this letter to you for your intervention and direction to the district administration to conduct a fresh revision with ample time so that the spirit of democracy is not curtailed or rubbished by the electoral process. The people should not be led to lead a struggle to ensure that they are legitimately enrolled as voters which is their due and for which the electoral officers are paid from the public money to ensure that the process and procedure is done transparently.
With greetings.

Tikender Singh Panwar
Deputy Mayor

Sanjay Chauhan
Mayor.

Cc:-The Deputy Commissioner, Shimla.