The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has started a major door-to-door verification drive across Mumbai after receiving a large number of complaints about mistakes in the draft voter list. Many citizens reported that their names were listed more than once or that they had been placed in the wrong ward. To fix these problems, the BMC is sending staff to visit homes and verify voter details.

To help people with these issues, voter assistance centres have also been opened at the BMC headquarters and at all 24 ward offices. Citizens can visit these centres to get information, submit objections, correct their details, or understand the verification process.

One of the biggest problems found in the voter list is duplication of names. Earlier, officials thought that over 11 lakh voters might have duplicate enrolments. But after updating the records, they found that 4.33 lakh names are duplicated, and some names appear more than twice. The BMC has already shared lists of these suspected duplicate entries with all ward offices. Now, officials are checking each case carefully by matching the voter’s name, age, gender and photograph with official records. If needed, they will also visit the person’s home to confirm the details.

For example, in the H-West ward, around 27,000 duplicate entries have been identified. Assistant Commissioner Dinesh Pallewad said that a special help desk has been set up on the ground floor of the ward office. He explained that if all the details match in the software, the team will visit the voter and collect Declaration A, which confirms the polling booth where they will cast their vote. However, he also added that some entries may look similar in the system but might actually belong to different people.

The second major issue is that many voters have been placed in the wrong ward. Opposition parties have also raised this concern with the State Election Commission. The Commission has ordered that any voter found in the wrong ward must be moved to the correct one.

To correct this, the BMC has introduced Form A for voters who find themselves listed in the wrong ward, and Form B for third parties who want to report such mistakes. After receiving an objection, BMC officials will visit the location, verify the details on the ground and submit their report.

The BMC has requested all citizens and housing societies to cooperate with Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and other election staff who come for verification. Their support will help ensure that Mumbai’s voter list is accurate and free of errors.