Voter list row: Election officer says Sanjay Singh's allegations 'incorrect, baseless'
New Delhi, Jan 4: The district election officer of New Delhi on Saturday rejected as "baseless" AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh's allegations related to the deletion of voter names in the assembly constituency from where party convener and former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal will contest upcoming polls.
The allegations of Singh that the district election officer (DEO), New Delhi, did not provide details of applicants seeking vote deletion and that the officer was "deliberately" deleting names of voters were "factually incorrect and baseless", the DEO said in a post on X.
The district magistrate of New Delhi doubles as the DEO during elections.
Singh on Friday met the New Delhi DE0 seeking names of those who filed applications for deletion of names of voters in the constituency.
The AAP has accused the BJP of filing applications in bulk for the deletion of names of voters who support the Kejriwal-led party across Delhi.
The officer asserted that the process of deleting any name from the electoral roll is carried out after a thorough verification strictly in accordance with the Election Commission's guidelines and a mere submission of a list for deletion does not start the process.
"As per the guidelines of the Election Commission of India (ECI), the summary of Form 7, which includes the names of both the objectors and objectees, is shared with all recognised political parties including AAP on a weekly basis through Form 10," the New Delhi DEO said in a post on X.
This information is also uploaded on the official website of CEO Delhi for public access and transparency. Hence, the statement that objectors' names are not being shared is factually not correct, he said.
The officer said the process of deleting any name from the electoral roll is carried out strictly in accordance with the guidelines issued by the ECI. The process starts with the filing of form 7 and involves a thorough field verification by the Booth Level Officers (BLOs), BLO supervisors, and other officers as per prescribed norms.
"Mere submitting a list for deletion doesn't start the deletion process," he said.
The officer cited two applications filed for deletion of the name of Singh's wife Anita Singh from New Delhi's voter list, saying upon field verification, the BLO found her residing at the given address and both Form 7 applications were rejected.
An FIR was also lodged against the applicants for wrongful filing of Form 7, he added.
"The allegation that the DEO, New Delhi, is deliberately deleting the names of genuine electors is entirely baseless and unsubstantiated. All deletions are carried out in strict compliance with ECI norms to maintain the integrity and accuracy of the electoral roll," he said.
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva charged that the AAP leaders including Singh were threatening election officers to ensure fake votes are not deleted from the New Delhi constituency.
"Kejriwal is losing from the New Delhi Assembly constituency, and this fear of defeat has left the Aam Aadmi Party in a state of panic," he alleged.
The AAP in a statement alleged that the BJP has been caught "red-handed" while attempting to manipulate the voters list.
The two individuals who had submitted applications to delete the vote of Sanjay Singh's wife were backed by BJP leaders, the party alleged.
After the summary revision process closed last month, the BJP filed applications to delete 5,000 names and add 7,500 names in the New Delhi Assembly constituency, claimed Aam Aadmi Party.
"Bharatiya Janata Party is conducting a targeted operation to delete names of AAP voters in New Delhi. Names of citizens living here for 40 to 50 years are being deleted, tomorrow BJP might even get their homes bulldozed and claim that they never lived here," Singh alleged on Friday.
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Air India resorts to cost-cutting ways amid 'tough times'; layoffs not anticipated
New Delhi/Mumbai (PTI): Hit hard by Pakistan airspace closure and Iran war, Air India has resorted to cost-cutting measures, including holding back annual increments for staff and asking them to cut discretionary spending as well as non-critical expenditures, warning of "tough times".
On Friday, Air India Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director (CEO & MD) Campbell Wilson told the staff it is going to be a "very, very difficult year" if things don't improve on the Middle East front.
A day after the loss-making airline's board discussed various cost-saving steps, Wilson, along with Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sanjay Sharma and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Ravindra Kumar GP, addressed the employees during a townhall on Friday where the emphasis on the need to keep a close watch on costs.
With higher jet fuel prices due to the West Asia conflict and airspace curbs, the loss-making airline's expenses have spiralled in recent times and against this backdrop, Sharma also told staffers that FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Calling for a relentless focus on costs in these tough times, Wilson urged employees to suspend discretionary spending, renegotiate rates where feasible, and defer non-critical expenditures.
"There must be a laser-sharp focus on eliminating wastage and leakages," he said.
Stressing the need to tighten the belt for a while, Wilson sounded optimistic that travel demand would rebound and the industry would continue on its upward path.
CHRO Ravindra Kumar told staff that the airline will proceed with variable pay for the last financial year and continue with planned promotions while noting that annual increments will be deferred by at least one quarter.
"We don't anticipate layoffs," he said.
At the airline's board meeting on Thursday, various cost-saving steps, including likely furloughs, were discussed. The Tata Group-owned airline has around 24,000 employees.
Generally, furlough refers to sending staff on unpaid leaves by companies during a tough financial situation.
During the townhall, CFO Sanjay Sharma said while strong revenue growth and fleet expansion drove financial momentum through FY25, FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Air India has seen around 40 per cent CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) in revenue between 2022 and 2025, he added.
The airline was acquired by the Tata Group from the government in January 2022.
The Air India CEO mentioned the external challenges being facing the aviation industry as a whole, including the continued closure of Pakistan airspace that is expected to persist for the foreseeable future and geopolitical conflicts leading to disruptions and airspace closures across West Asia.
Wilson, who is set to step down later this year, also flagged a sharp depreciation of the rupee and a 2.5-3 times increase in jet fuel prices, and added that these factors have adversely affected travel sentiment and consumer confidence, as per the sources.
If the Strait of Hormuz opens, oil prices fall and consumer as well as business confidence come back, there is a decent chance of a solid recovery, Wilson said, adding that unless those circumstances happen, it was going to be "a very, very difficult year".
"I feel somewhat responsible that we ended up with probably the biggest surprise of the year in the external environment which was a full-scale war in our neighbouring region in the Gulf. That has had a huge impact on airspace," he said.
For Air India, Wilson said the situation is compounded by the fact that the airline cannot fly over the neighbouring country and has to take a much longer routing for any west-bound destination.
"Every airline is reporting that they are under some sort of financial pressure as a result of higher fuel prices and economic uncertainty. So, it is unfortunately not a great environment to be running an airline," the Air India CEO said.
The Air India Group -- Air India and Air India Express -- is projected to have incurred more than Rs 22,000 crore loss in the financial year ended March 2026.
At the townhall, Wilson also highlighted various initiatives, including completion of the retrofit of its legacy narrow-body aircraft and rapid network optimisation to redeploy capacity more efficiently.
