UP Polls: Software glitch shifts voters to other booths in Noida

Due to a software problem, names of several voters was shifted to other polling booths. Many such voters skipped voting and said they were hassled.

Jayanta Ghosal of Sector 19 said that his name was struck off from the list at his usual polling station in the city magistrate’s office and included in booth number 428, at Chotpur Colony, which is 10km from his house.

He said that the booth level officer told him that his name was missing. The officer then called a helpline number and told him that his name was listed at booth number 428 at Chotpur Colony, near Sector 63.

Initially, there was confusion as the officer informed him that his name has been included in Jodhpur. Later, other voters and officials said that it may be Chotpur, near sector 63. “I do not know where it is. Moreover, if I go there, the officials might question how my name is included in their list and they may not allow me to vote. It will be a waste of time and fuel,” Jayanta Ghosal of C607 in Sector 19 said.

Several voters at other polling stations also faced similar problems.

At the Sector 20 polling station, booth level officer Abhishek Vats, said,”Several voters from other sectors, such as sectors 19 and 27, are included in my booth, numbered 219. Due to a software problem, such mistakes have taken place in several polling stations and voters are facing problems.”