India is world’s largest democracy with millions of voters. Voter Identity card was introduced to make the election process smooth and better. Voter identity card which is also known as the Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) is one of the important documents as it validates the voter. It is issued by the Election Commission of India to the person eligible to vote after verifying the documents required.
A person can get only one voter id card. So what do if voter id card is lost or stolen by someone? In this case person can not apply again for the voter id card. But He or she can apply for the duplicate copy of the voter id card. In this article we will discuss the process to apply for the duplicate voter id card.
Is it important to have a Voter ID card?
Voters and their right to vote is the cherished foundation of any democracy. A single vote can change the whole political situation. In Indian democracy every eligible citizen has a vote right. To avoid multiple voting and voting in disguise of other voters, Government introduced Electors Photo Identity Card to verify and authenticate the voters. But still, there are many false voters in India. Recently in Andhra Pradesh YSR Party has alleged that 59 Lakh voters are fake, which is about 16% of total voters.[i] Such fake voting is a big problem in India.
If you are eligible to vote and willing to take part in the democratic system by casting your vote, you should have a Voter ID card. Electors Photo Identity Card is important for a better election process and better democracy.
How to apply for the duplicate copy of voter ID card?
First of all you shall file a FIR for lost voter id card to avoid further legal hurdles. Then You can apply for the duplicate voter id card, online as well as offline.
To apply offline in the electoral office, follow the following steps:
- Go to the electoral office which is near from your place of residence or office under which your residence is located and get a copy of application form for duplicate voter ID card which is Form EPIC-002.
- Fill up the form with the all required details such as name, address of residence, voter ID card number and other things.
- Attach the required supporting documents and submit the form at the electoral office.
- After submission of form, you will get a reference number from the office that you can use to track the status of duplicate voter ID card application.
- Application submitted by you will be verified by the Electoral Officer and after verification, you will be issued with a duplicate voter’s ID card.
- You will get notification regarding your application after process and verification. After this you can collect your card in person from the electoral office.
If you want to apply for the duplicate copy of Voter ID card online follow the following steps:
- Go the state’s Chief Electoral Officer’s website or https://nvsp.in/ and download a copy of the application form which is Form EPIC-002 to issue of a duplicate voter ID card .
- Fill all the details in the form and attach documents required or mentioned in the form for example copy of FIR, proof of address, identity proof, etc.
- Submit the form in electoral office, from where you will be issued a reference number.
- Reference number is used to track status of your application on the state election office website.
- After submission of the application form, it will be processed and verified by the electoral office.
- Once it is done with verification, you will get notified and can go to the electoral office and collect your duplicate voter ID card.
Conclusion
Voter ID card is important as it validates identification of voter. Even though a person cannot apply for the voter ID card more than once, there is no need to panic if you lost your voter id. You can apply for the duplicate copy of voter ID card. Procedure is very similar for both online as well as offline.
“The views of the authors are personal“
Reference
[i]https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/59-lakh-fake-voters-in-andhra-ysr-congress/1483177 (Last Visited- 07 December 2019)
