Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 10 March 2024
Chief Electoral Officer, Mr. B S Jaglan, IAS, visited the Election Duty Certificate (EDC) Centre set up in the Office premises of the District Election Officer, South Andaman on 19th March 2024 and interacted with the staff and explained the procedure of EDC forms. The CEO informed that as per Rule 17 of Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, “Voter on Election Duty” means any polling agent, any Polling Officer, Presiding Officer or other public servant, who is an elector in the constituency and is by reason of his being on election duty unable to vote at the Polling Station where he is entitled to vote.
In view of the above provisions, all public servants who are deployed on election duty are entitled to the facility of voting by postal ballot. To further clarify, all Polling Officials, all Police Personnel in the State (who are covered under the notification issued by the UT Administration in terms of Section 28A of the RP Act 1951), deployed on election duty and all the Commission’s Observers and the staff members accompanying them are Voters on Election Duty for this purpose.
Further, the Commission has also extended this facility of postal ballot to all private persons and non-government staff engaged in election work, such as drivers, conductors, cleaners of vehicles, videographers, staff of expenditure monitoring teams, staff working in control room, helpline staff, those appointed for dispatch and receiving of poll material, EVM maintenance, etc., who are specifically assigned any official work in connection with election on the day of poll and because of that they are not able to vote at the polling station.
However, those persons who may have been assigned specific task related to election during pre-poll period, but would not be on such election duty on the day of poll, cannot be treated as Voters on Election Duty for the purpose of postal ballot facility.
The Chief Electoral Officer has requested all voters who are covered under the aforesaid rules to visit the EDC facilitation centres for availing postal ballot/EDC facility.
The CEO also appreciated the arrangements made by the Returning Officer (ANIPC)/DEO (SA), Mr. Arjun Sharma, IAS.