All aspiring candidates within the ensuing Meghalaya Meeting elections subsequent month are mandated to publicly make recognized prominently their felony antecedents, if any, in each print and digital media if they’re to qualify in order to enlighten the voters on who they’re electing to the august home, chief election commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar mentioned in Shillong on Friday.
“Even political events must enlighten the voters as to why they selected candidates with felony backgrounds in a specific constituency. That is an effort to make sure that the voters is properly knowledgeable concerning the candidates previous to masking their alternative,” he mentioned. The candidates and political events must perform this train faithfully three consecutive occasions earlier than the polls.
The CEC, election commissioners Arun Goel and Anup Chandra Pandey together with a staff of the Election Fee of India (ECI) concluded their two-day assessment of the ballot preparedness in Meghalaya on Friday.
Kumar mentioned that in its effort to make sure free and truthful polls in probably the most clear method attainable, the ECI has taken all crucial steps on this regard by involving all authorities companies to plug all attainable loopholes and lacunae.
Satisfactory forces are being deployed involving each state and central armed forces together with a stringent aerial surveillance system to watch the entry and exit of flights into the state.
“Companies got directions to observe customary protocols in doing correct checks of flights and choppers coming into the state to keep away from any political social gathering or candidate to wrongly affect or induce the voters (with money),” Kumar mentioned.
All warehouses and stockyards might be monitored to make sure there is no such thing as a stocking of any materials that could possibly be used for vote inducement.
“Meghalaya, recognized for having performed peaceable polls, is ready to do the identical and detailed discussions and deliberations have been held with the chief secretary, DGP and all senior authorities officers to make sure a profitable ballot train,” Kumar added.
Dispelling doubts of attainable infractions alongside the delicate inter state boundary, Kumar assured that each one registered voters dwelling in villages alongside the disputed Assam-Meghalaya border might be taking part within the upcoming elections.
The ECI staff additionally reviewed the state of affairs following the violence and skirmishes that occurred in disputed Block I and in Block II.
Kumar mentioned that the ECI Suvidha Portal( http://suvidha.eci.gov.in) will present on-line nomination and affidavit facility to candidates and political events. Permissions for rallies, conferences, and so on. can be utilized on-line via this portal.
Urging voters to make use of the vVIGIL cell app to report any dangerous campaigning or ballot infraction by political events or particular person candidates, Kumar mentioned, “Utilizing the app, I can guarantee you that our staff will reply to the report inside 100 minutes, confirm the identical and an Election Fee staff will get again to the complainant.”
The app could also be used to report such violations by sending texts, movies or pictures.
Of the 29.66 lakh inhabitants, over 21 lakh voters have registered with the ECI and are eligible to vote within the upcoming elections. There are 55 seats reserved for STs and 5 open seats in 12 districts.
Kumar mentioned that there are 3,482 Polling Stations with a mean of 620 voters in every. Of those, 120 cubicles might be managed by girls groups and 60 cubicles to be managed by younger polling groups and 50% of polling stations could have a webcasting facility.
The Election Fee has additionally written to every of the 290 centenarians congratulating them and urging them to take part within the upcoming meeting elections, Kumar mentioned.
One other 81,443 voters are newly registered voters.
“For additional inclusion of the voters ample preparations might be made on the polling station for the comfort of senior residents and PwD voters. Dwelling voting facility can also be there for 80 years + and PwD voters. A choose and drop facility can also be out there for them. All Polling Stations might be on the bottom ground,” he added.
Groups will even trek via tough and inaccessible terrain to make sure that no voter is left behind, the EC has assured. Meghalaya has 74 non-motorable polling stations, 2 riverine polling stations accessible by boat solely. Nongriat Polling Station in East Khasi Hills is accessible solely on foot via the world acclaimed Double Decker Residing Root Bridge, Kumar mentioned.