PANAJI
The Election Commission (ECI) has extended the facility of voting from home to senior citizens aged 85 years and above and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) for the ensuing Ponda by-election. The initiative was first introduced during the 2022 assembly elections in Goa.
As per provisions under Section 60(c) of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951, eligible voters can cast their vote through postal ballot without visiting polling stations. Such electors can avail the facility by filling Form 12D and submitting it to the Returning Officer through their Booth Level Officer (BLO) within five days of the election notification.
Polling teams will then visit the residences of these voters to collect their votes, following a schedule prepared by the Returning Officer. The schedule will also be shared with contesting candidates to ensure transparency.
Postal ballot
The postal ballot facility has also been extended to voters engaged in essential services on poll day, including personnel from fire services, health, electricity, traffic, ambulance services, aviation, and long-distance government transport corporations. The media personnel authorised for poll day coverage are also classified under the same.
Voters on election duty will receive their ballots at designated facilitation centres, where arrangements have been made to ensure complete secrecy while casting votes.
Service voters will be issued postal ballots electronically through the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) once the list of contesting candidates is finalised. They will not be required to bear postal charges.
Authorities have specified that all postal ballots must reach the Returning Officer by 8:00 am on May 4, the day of counting.
