Staff from various departments had been deputed for the work. According to reports, two ballot papers issued for Ward-4 of Khanlag Panchayat were found missing during an inspection.
A complaint submitted to the police by Tanmay Kanwar, Block Development Officer and Returning Officer for Kunihar Panchayat, stated that ballot papers bearing serial numbers 5265516 to 5265670 had been issued for the panchayat. During the inspection, however, two ballot papers — bearing serial numbers 5265669 and 5265670 — could not be traced.
The process of preparing the ballot papers had commenced on May 16 at the Kunihar Block Development Headquarters. Assistant Returning Officers (AROs) and staff members assigned to various panchayats had been entrusted with the responsibility of distributing and preparing the ballot papers.
While verifying the ballot papers issued to the respective AROs, the ballot paper allocation team discovered the shortage of two ballot papers. The matter was immediately reported to higher authorities. Acting swiftly, the administration decided to register an FIR against the concerned team, while all eight employees associated with the electoral process were relieved of their election duties with immediate effect.