BALLOT PAPERS

General /bye-election-dispatch of postal ballot papers for Armed forces.

Election Commission letter No. 52/1/84, dated the 7th November, 1984 to Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Shipping and Transport (Border Roads Development Board) and Ministry of Defense and all Chief Electoral Officers.
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Subject:- General/Bye-elections - Dispatch of postal ballot papers for Armed Forces Personnel - Assam Rifles - Central Reserve Police - Members of Armed Reserve Police - Members of Armed Police of Force of a State serving outside the State B.S.F. - Indo Tibetan Border Police Force - Central Industrial Security Force etc.

I am directed to say that it has come to the notice of the Commission that a number of postal ballot papers dispatched to the voters belonging to the Forces mentioned above are received back undelivered by the Returning Officers concerned or received back by the Returning Officers after the due time and date. Consequently, a big chunk of these service voters - say more than 50 percent - are being deprived of their right of franchise.

2. The cause of such non-delivery or delayed delivery of postal ballot papers appears to be the incorrect and incomplete addresses of the voters given in the electoral rolls, or delay in transmitting postal ballot papers to them on account of the service voters being stationed in forward areas or in units different from those indicated in the electoral rolls. The electoral authorities are rendered helpless in such a situation unless the concerned Record Officers/Commandants take initiative to adopt effective ways and means to make the system work effectively.

3. The Commission feels that to remedy the situation, as far as practicable, the Ministry concerned should issue suitable standing instructions to the Departments or Record Offices or Commandants concerned to periodically report authenticated changes in the addresses of the voters to concerned Chief Electoral Officers well before the announcement of elections so that the postal ballot papers sent to them are duly delivered at correct addresses.

4. In case, that is not possible because of frequent shifting of the units or personnel at short notice, the Record Officers may explore the possibility of using their special courier service to deliver the postal ballot papers to service voters in forward areas and bring them back after duly observing the procedure and thereafter forward the envelopes from Record Offices to the concerned Returning Officers so as to reach them before the commencement of counting in the constituency.

5. Such instructions should also be repeated every time whenever general election either to the Lok Sabha or State Legislative Assemblies are announced.

6. Now that the general election to Lok Sabha and to some of the State Legislative Assemblies are round the corner, the Ministries concerned are requested to issue immediate instructions to the Departments, Record Offices and Commandants and other agencies concerned as the case may be, to intimate the Chief Electoral Officers concerned changes in the addresses of the voters belonging to the Forces mentioned above, enabling the Returning Officers to dispatch postal ballot papers at the correct addresses.

7. Ministers are also requested to issue standing instructions, as desired above, for intimating to the Chief Electoral Officers the changes in the addresses of the said voters, periodically say once in 6 months.

8. However, before every general election, the lists of addresses in the electoral rolls should be verified and changes, if any, intimated to the Chief Electoral Officers concerned, well in time, for issue of postal ballot papers.

9. A copy of the instructions issued in this connection may also kindly be forwarded to the Commission for its record.

10. The receipt of this letter may be acknowledged.

Copy forwarded to the Chief Electoral Officers of all States and Union Territories. They are requested to take immediate steps to ascertain changes in the addresses of the voters of the Forces mentioned above from the authorities concerned and on receipt of the same, it may be passed on to the District Election Officer/Electoral Registration Officer concerned to make necessary changes in the addresses, and to update the electoral rolls.

They are requested to acknowledge receipt of this letter.



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