e-ballot for soldiers only in 5 segments

Amaninder Pal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 6

The much-touted electronic postal ballot, which will facilitate defence and paramilitary personnel (service voters) to cast their votes electronically, will be provided only in five of the 117 Assembly segments in the state.

The Election Commission of India had, in October last year, announced that for first time that the e-ballot facility would be provided to service voters during the Assembly elections. However, it didn’t reveal the exact number of segments wherein this channel of voting would remain operational.

Now, the commission has decided to extend this facility to service voters of only five constituencies – Ludhiana (North), Ludhiana (East), Atam Nagar, Amritsar (North) and Jalandhar (West).

Before Punjab, the option of voting through e-ballots was introduced in Pudducherry where only three service voters were registered.

However, there are around 1.09 lakh soldiers registered as voters in Punjab. At present, the soldiers deputed outside states cast their vote using postal ballot.

“The introduction of e-ballot system in all 117 segments requires elaborate arrangements, which is not possible at this juncture and can be possible only by 2019 general elections. We are introducing the facility only in five segments on a pilot basis,” said a senior officer.

Since the delivery of postal ballot to soldiers and then back to election authorities entails a lengthy procedure, these had a low share in poll percentage. In case of Punjab, it was never more than 3-4 per cent. The facility is aimed at increasing soldiers’ share in the voting percentage.