Kolkata: Before the first phase of the two-phase West Bengal assembly elections on April 23, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal, issued strict guidelines to sector officers, presiding officers, and other polling officials on maintaining neutrality during the poll process.
An insider from the Chief Electoral Officer’s office said that instructions have been given to these categories of polling officers not to seek or accept any assistance from representatives of any polling party, including polling agents, during the polling process.
The poll officers have also been advised not to accept any food, water, or other items offered to them by any representative of any political party. Instead, the polling officers have been advised to rely solely on the arrangements made for them by the administration, as per the directions of the Election Commission of India.
To recall, in February this year, the Election Commission of India initiated disciplinary proceedings against seven Central Armed Police Forces personnel for allegedly attending an Iftar party in violation of guidelines.
Again in March this year, the Election Commission of India initiated disciplinary action against three other Central Armed Police Forces personnel for entering a local Trinamool Congress office during their duty hours and engaging in casual conversation with local party workers.
The sector officers have been advised to remain in constant touch with the forces’ coordinators in their respective areas to ensure absolute safety and security on polling day.
The other instructions issued by the Chief Electoral Officer’s office include mock polling before the commencement of polling and compulsory examinations of the electronic voting machines and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail machines.
“Instructions have been given to report any irregularities or problems during the voting process immediately to the Chief Electoral Officer’s office, and, for that, if necessary, they should be reported through the ECINET app,” the Chief Electoral Officer’s office insider said.
A strict ban has also been imposed on the use of mobile phones at polling stations. The Commission has also issued detailed instructions on the location of polling stations, the use of CCTV cameras, and access controls to protect voters’ privacy.
(IANS)
