Lucknow, Nov 1 (IANS): The Samajwadi Party (SP) has started the process of collecting evidence regarding the alleged deletion of voters' names in the recent Assembly elections.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has asked SP president Akhilesh Yadav to "submit documentary proof" to substantiate his allegation about the deletion of voter names in 2022 UP Assembly polls.

The SP president has now asked all the party candidates (winners and losers) and district units' top office-bearers to gather evidence of names that were 'wrongfully struck off voters' lists'.

They have been directed to compile photocopies of complaints made to returning officers at the time.

The party has set November 3 as the deadline for the candidates to submit the documents to the party headquarters so that they could be sent to the Election Commission in time.

A letter to this effect has been sent to all by SP state president Naresh Uttam Patel.

Patel's letter also asks to collect affidavits from such voters whose names were wrongfully struck off the voters' lists.

It may be recalled that on October 27, the EC had asked Akhilesh Yadav to submit proof to back up his charges by November 10.

Akhilesh hit back at the poll panel on October 28 and said, "Had the Election Commission itself followed the rules related to the voters' list in the 2022 UP Assembly polls, then thousands of voters would not have been deprived of their vote."

Last month, the SP chief had alleged that the names of 20,000 voters from the Yadav and Muslim communities had been deleted from almost all 403 Assembly constituencies ahead of the state elections in February-March.