New Delhi, April 1 – The Election Commission of India (ECI) held a review meeting with polling officials, including Central Observers, on Wednesday. During the meeting, the Commission reiterated the necessary instructions and guidelines to be followed for maintaining the integrity and sanctity of the electoral process in Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry, which are going to polls on April 9.
The ECI team, led by CEC Gyanesh Kumar, instructed the Central Observers (General, Police, Expenditure) to ensure that "the elections are held in a festive and fair manner, free from any intimidation, violence, or inducement."
The review meeting, held ahead of the elections, saw a total of 282 Central Observers, along with the Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry, attending the briefing via video conferencing.
The poll panel emphasized the strict enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct and also called for prompt action in case of any complaints of violations.
The observers were also asked to publicize their contact numbers and the location and time for receiving complaints from the public, political parties, or candidates and their agents.
"They were also directed to oversee whether the presiding officers have been properly trained, with special emphasis on timely data entry of 2-hourly voter turnout and other data on the ECINET voter turnout module, proper application of indelible ink, filling out form 17-C, and sharing this information with the polling agents present at the close of the poll, as well as deletion of mock poll data," an official ECI statement said.
In addition, the observers were also asked to ensure the convenience of voters by providing minimum facilities at all polling stations, including a mobile phone deposit facility and benches for voters in queues.
"The monitoring control room arrangements should be properly checked, and a trial run should be conducted in the presence of all staff posted there for monitoring. These staff should be well-trained to identify and flag errors," the poll body further stated.
Notably, elections are scheduled in 4 states and 1 Union Territory over the next month. With elections spanning 824 constituencies, approximately 17.4 crore eligible voters will participate in the democratic process. The voting process will involve 2.18 lakh polling booths, managed by approximately 2.5 million election officials. The Model Code of Conduct is in effect in the poll-bound states.