Election Commission to Discuss Aadhaar-Voter ID Linking in High-Level Meeting
The meeting aims to address duplicate voter IDs and gather input from political parties on the contentious linkage plan.
- Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has scheduled a meeting on March 18 with top officials, including the Home Secretary and the CEO of the Aadhaar body, to discuss linking voter IDs with Aadhaar.
- The linkage aims to tackle the issue of duplicate voter IDs, which has been a long-standing challenge in India's electoral system.
- Opposition parties have raised concerns about potential voter manipulation and accused the Election Commission of aligning with the central government’s agenda.
- The Election Commission has invited suggestions from national and state political parties by April 30 and plans to train election agents on legal frameworks for the first time in decades.
- While the Aadhaar-voter ID linkage is officially voluntary, critics argue the process has created a de facto requirement, prompting legal and political scrutiny.