This comes a day after Election Commission of India decided to extend the ban on political rallies and roadshows for the upcoming assembly elections till 11 February.
The Election Commission of India on Tuesday appointed 15 former civil servants as special observers for the upcoming assembly elections in Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.
Election Commission of India States:
“The Special Observers will be supervising and monitoring the work being done by the electoral machinery in their assigned States and ensure that stringent, effective enforcement action is undertaken based on intelligence inputs and complaints received through CVigil, voter helpline etc.
These officers will oversee the entire poll processes as eyes and ears of the Commission on the ground to ensure free, fair and voter-friendly elections,”
Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra stated
He said that the purpose of deploying the special observers is to objectively assess the poll preparedness, identify the critical gaps and guide the electoral machinery in the field to ensure impartial, inducement free, peaceful and Covid safe elections.
Chandra also pointed out that “each election is unique in itself, has its own logistics and challenges, yet higher voter turnout has to be encouraged. Special Observers thus need to be vigilant and be in touch with the Commission on a real time basis throughout the entire election process and should bring to the notice of the Commission any corrective measures required.”
He said, “All vulnerable areas have to be attended to and adequate confidence building measures undertaken. He added that ECI wishes to provide a hassle free experience to voters at each Polling station which have been provided with Assured Minimum facilities especially for Persons with Disabilities,”
“Postal Ballot for senior citizen 80+yrs voters is another facility provided. Polling stations have been made Covid protocol compliant and voter friendly,” it added.
For the official website for elections in India, click here
This happens a day after the ECI decided to extend the ban on rallies and roadshows for the elections till 11 February.
ECI’s another decision on campaigns
However, the Commission has now allowed the political parties and contesting candidates to hold a physical public meeting in designated open spaces with a maximum capacity of 1,000 people (instead of the existing 500 persons) or 50 per cent capacity of the ground.
With regards to door to door campaign, Commission has enhanced the limit from 10 persons to 20 persons.
The order states
“The Commission has now granted relaxation for political parties to the extent that indoor meetings of a maximum of 500 persons (instead of existing 300 persons) or 50% of the capacity of the hall or the prescribed limit set by SDMA is allowed,”
ALSO READ :BJP RELEASES MANIPUR ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS 2022 CANDIDATES LIST