Don't test our patience: TMC on demand for discussion on duplicate voter ID numbers
New Delhi: Amid continuing demand for a discussion on the issue of duplication of voter ID numbers, Trinamool Congress sources on Wednesday said the party is being patient but the government should not "test it's patience".
The TMC, which had furnished a list of voter ID cards from different states with the same EPIC number, along with some other opposition parties has been seeking a debate on the issue in both Houses of Parliament.
In Rajya Sabha last week, TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy suggested that the notice given under Rule 267 should be converted into notice under rule 176 to take up the issue in Parliament as a short duration discussion.
Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar had called it a "good suggestion", adding that he would take it into consideration.
However, with a date for the debate not being decided yet, a TMC leader said the party would wait till the end of this week.
"We had a discussion with the EC, we have been asking for a discussion in Parliament. We are being very patient but don't test our patience," the TMC leader said.
"We have not disrupted the House yet, but the show is not over yet," the TMC leader said.
The leader added that the party would wait till the end of this week.
The second half of the Budget Session is scheduled to conclude on April 4, and March 31 is a holiday on account of Eid.
The issue of voter-ID cards in different states having duplicate numbers was raised by West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee on February 27.
The Election Commission has said the identical EPIC numbers or series were allotted to some electors from different states and Union territories due to a "decentralised and manual mechanism" being followed prior to shifting of the electoral roll database of all states to the ERONET (Electoral Roll Management) platform.
The EC has also said it will resolve the issue within three months.
The TMC has asked the poll panel to reveal the total number of duplicate EPIC numbers.
