Now, service voters can receive e-postal ballots

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 24

Fulfilling a long-pending demand, the Centre today amended the electoral rules to allow service voters, including armed forces personnel, to get their postal ballot through electronic means instead of regular post on pilot basis to save valuable time.

Under the system, a service voter can now download and print the blank postal ballot paper sent to them electronically, mark their preference and post the filled-up ballot back to their respective returning officers.

This would cut short the delay experienced in the present system of two-way transmission of ballot paper by the postal services, official sources said here.

The two-way electronic transmission did not find favour with the Election Commission for security and secrecy reasons, the sources added.

The Legislative Department under the Ministry of Law and Justice issued a notification on October 21, amending Rule 23 of the Conduct of Elections Rules to enable service voters to cast their vote in elections through the e-postal ballot, an official said.

The armed forces personnel serving in remote and border areas would be greatly benefitted since the present system of two-way transmission of ballot paper by the postal services has not been able to meet the expectations of the service voters.

The issue was engaging attention of the government and the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence headed by Major General Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri (retd) too was vigorously pursuing the matter.

The issue was also brought up before the Supreme Court, pleading for creating effective mechanism for the armed forces personnel and their families to exercise their right to vote easily and effectively.

The Election Commission proposed that the categories of voters mentioned in Rule 18 of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, might be made eligible for the e-postal ballot system on a pilot basis.