PANAJI
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced that senior citizens aged 85 and above, as well as Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), can vote from home for the upcoming Ponda by-elections by submitting Form 12D within five days of the election notification.
According to an official statement, the Commission, under Section 60(c) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, has permitted electors above 85 years of age and PwDs flagged in the electoral rolls to cast their votes through postal ballots.
Eligible electors can avail the facility by filling out Form 12D and submitting it to the Returning Officer through their Booth Level Officer (BLO) within five days of the notification. Polling teams will subsequently visit their homes to collect votes, as per a schedule prepared by the respective Returning Officers and shared with candidates.
Additionally, electors engaged in essential services on the day of polling can apply for the postal ballot facility through the designated nodal officer of their respective departments. Essential services covered under this provision include fire services, health, electricity, traffic, ambulance services, aviation, and long-distance government road transport corporations.
Media personnel authorised by the ECI for poll day coverage have also been classified as absentee voters under essential services and are eligible for the postal ballot facility. “A voter on election duty shall receive their postal ballot, record their vote, and return it at the facilitation centre,” the ECI stated, ensuring complete secrecy of voting.
Service voters will receive their postal ballots electronically through the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) immediately after the finalisation of the list of contesting candidates. They are not required to bear any postal charges.
ECI further stated that the postal ballots must reach the concerned Returning Officers (ROs) by 8:00 am on May 4, 2026, which is the date of counting of votes.
The Returning Officers (ROs) and District Election Officers (DEOs) have also been directed to brief political parties and contesting candidates about these provisions
