EC issues guidelines for free and fair Prez polls

New Delhi, July 15 (UNI) The Election Commission has issued detailed instructions to ensure free and fair polls on July 19 for the highest constitutional office of President where UPA candidate Mrs Pratibha Patil is locked in a straight contest with NDA-backed Independent Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.

The instructions relate to a ban on mobile phones inside the polling centres, videography of the polling process and identification of members of the electoral college comprising Members of Parliament and Members of Legislative Assemblies.

Seven hundred and seventy six MPs, including 543 from Lok Sabha and 4,120 legislators from various states, including Delhi and Puducherry, constitute the electoral college comprising 10,98,882 votes.

The ruling UPA alliance has got 5.13 lakh votes while the opposition NDA has 3.54 lakh votes and the United National Progressive Alliance 1.05 lakh votes.

The EC said MPs can cast their votes either at Parliament House or with the Commission's prior permission at any place of poll set up at the state headquarters.

Similarly, MLAs are allowed to cast their votes either at their own state headquarters or at the Parliament House.

In exceptional cases, they can cast their votes at any of the state headquarters with the prior permission of the EC.

The EC said identity can be verified through the identification card issued by the respective Assembly, Elector Photo Identity Card or the original copy of the Certificate of Election.

To ensure secrecy of the voting process, the dimension of the voting compartment made of good quality card board sall be 21"X 21"x21" and the same shall remain open only from one side and will be fixed on the table at a considerable distance from the persons seated at the polling station, so that there is no scope for the violation of secrecy.

While carrying the empty ballot boxes from New Delhi, the box can be booked as checked-in luggage if it is not possible to carry it as cabin luggage, the EC said. But polled ballot boxes cannot be moved as checked-in luggage, according to the instructions.

The Commission has also decided that videography of critical events will be got done by the Returning Officers and Assistant Returning Officers during the elections.

UNI