UP Chief Electoral Officer apologises over caste bias row after controversial voter slip remarks

Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on Tuesday apologised for controversial remarks posted from the state election office’s official X account after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh alleged errors in voter slips and accused the electoral authorities of making caste-sensitive comments.

In a statement posted on X, the CEO’s office acknowledged the public outrage caused by its earlier response and said the tone of the communication was inappropriate for an official account.

“The tone and tenor and the acerbic nature of the comments in the quoted post of this handle is not in line with the nature of communication expected from this official handle,” the statement said.

It added that the “genuine outrage” caused by the remarks had been noted and offered a “sincere apology” to those who were shocked or offended. The office also promised that its future communications would be “decorous and formal”.

The apology followed a controversy over the office’s response to allegations of erroneous names in electoral rolls for recent Legislative Council elections in Uttar Pradesh.

AAP leader flags bizarre names in electoral rolls

The controversy began after Sanjay Singh highlighted what he described as absurd entries in voter slips. Among the examples he cited were “Ram ne Yadav ko maara” (Ram killed Yadav), the father of a voter named “Narendra Yadav” being recorded as “B. Com.”, and “Mohammad Iqbal Beg” appearing as “Mohammad Iqbal bheekh maangte hain”, which translates to Mohammad Iqbal begs for alms.

Responding to Singh’s allegations, the CEO’s office posted a comment referring to another purportedly erroneous entry, “Ram ne Sharma ko mara” (Ram killed Sharma), in the voter list for the recent Legislative Council elections.

“Computers/software are not casteist. It is acceptable that we made a mistake, but fortunately, even during the mistake, there was no discrimination based on caste,” the post said.

The office then added: “We must also thank God that Ram did not kill any minority. Otherwise, in addition to being casteist, there would also be an accusation of being communal.”

The remarks drew criticism for their tone and references to caste and religion, prompting the state election office to issue its apology on Tuesday.

Sanjay Singh accuses UP CEO of acting as BJP agent

Singh also accused Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa of acting as a “BJP agent” and questioned whether free and fair elections could be conducted in the state under his watch.

Speaking at a press conference in Lucknow, the AAP leader said the election office’s response suggested political bias.

“The Election Commission's remark that ‘the software is not casteist’, and the comment that ‘thankfully, Ram did not kill any member of a minority community, otherwise there would have been accusations of communalism’ proves that an agent of the BJP is occupying a constitutional position,” Singh said.

He added that fair elections were not possible in Uttar Pradesh with such an official in place and called for strict action against Rinwa.

The CEO’s office has apologised for the manner in which it responded to the allegations and pledged to maintain a formal tone in future communications. The controversy has centred on both the alleged errors in voter records and the appropriateness of the official account’s response to them.