Several voters in Hyderabad and other parts of Telangana reportedly faced difficulties in submitting their filled enumeration forms as the deadline approached on August 10. Concerns grew among voters who said Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were unavailable or unwilling to collect the forms, citing Bonalu and Rangam holidays.
The issue was reported in several areas of Hyderabad, including constituencies such as Charminar and Yakutpura. Voters said they attempted to contact their respective BLOs to hand over the completed forms but were unable to reach them. Some families expressed concern that they could miss the submission deadline because of the difficulty in contacting poll officials.
A voter from Noorkhan Bazar in the Charminar constituency said he had repeatedly tried to contact his local BLO but received no response. Similar concerns were reported by voters in the Doodhbowli area, where members of a family were reportedly still waiting to submit their forms.
The reported difficulties were not limited to Hyderabad. In some districts, voters also raised concerns about BLOs being reluctant to accept completed forms. In instances where forms were collected, some voters reportedly said they were not provided acknowledgement of submission, adding to uncertainty among those approaching the deadline.
AIMIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi also raised the issue with the Election Commission of India and the District Election Officer. He said complaints had been received from voters who claimed that BLOs had cited Bonalu and Rangam holidays while declining to accept enumeration forms.
Owaisi urged election authorities to examine the complaints, pointing out that August 10 was the stated deadline for the submission process. Some voters have also requested an extension of the deadline to account for the public holidays and difficulties faced in submitting the forms.
According to figures cited in the report, digitisation of enumeration data had reached 2,64,30,494 voters, or 78.14 per cent, by Sunday. Hyderabad’s digitisation progress was reported at more than 58 per cent.
With the deadline approaching, voters who have completed their forms remain concerned about ensuring that their submissions are properly received and recorded by the election authorities.
