Mumbai: An FIR has been registered against eight government employees, including teachers, for failing to report for Booth Level Officer (BLO) duty as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, thereby violating government orders. The case pertains to the Jogeshwari East Vidhan Sabha constituency and was filed based on a complaint by an election official.
Details of the FIR
According to the FIR, an order was issued on July 9, selecting eight government staff to function as BLOs. The work was scheduled to start from June 20. One BLO was allotted for each part of the voters' list. Among those selected were six teachers, one assistant at FilmCity in Goregaon, and a storekeeper from Aarey.
Despite repeated reminders and notices sent to some of them, the individuals did not report for BLO duty until June 11. The complainant subsequently approached the police to press charges against the eight individuals.
Previous Incidents
In recent times, FIRs were also registered against 14 school teachers from educational institutions in Borivli, Dahisar, and Malad for similar non-compliance with BLO duty.
Role of a BLO
A BLO is a government or semi-government official appointed by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to act as the custodian of the electoral roll at the polling booth level. BLOs are typically drawn from local institutions such as schools, government offices, or other public sector organizations. Teachers, anganwadi workers, village-level workers, civic employees, and employees of the GST department, Mhada, collector's office, among others, are mainly appointed as BLOs.
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