Media House Sociedade de Fomento Industrial has filed a petition in the Bombay High Court at Goa seeking to conduct an exit poll on February 4, without publishing the resultsduring the ban period saying that the ban issued by the Election Commission which included even conducting such a poll was tantamount to infringing the rights of the press.
The petition which is scheduled to be heard on Thursday alleges that the acts of the in seeking to restrict the collection of information by conducting of exit polls for the purpose of dissemination to the public at large at a later date is clearly violative of the right to freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a).
In terms of Section 126A of The Representation of the People Act, 1951, there is a restriction on publication and dissemination of result of any Exit Poll during such period, as may be notified by the the Election Commission. Such restrictions extends to the publication or publicizing by means of the print or electronic media or dissemination in any other manner, whatsoever, the result of any exit Poll during the period to be notified by the Election Commission.
However, the spokesperson of the Election Commission of India had categorically stated that even the conduct of Exit Poll is banned.
Exit Polls cannot be conducted and published by means of Print and Electronic Media or dissemination in any other form starting from 4/2/2017 to 8/3/2017 up to 5.30 p.m.
The Petitioners state that reading of Section 126A of the said Act, makes it clear that, there is no bar or prohibition to conduct the Exit Poll itself. The bar is on publication of the results of the Exit Poll.
The Petitioners state that the Poll in the State of Goa is fixed on 4/2/2017 and exit polls by their very nature means an opinion survey respecting how the electors have voted at an election. By its very nature, the same has to be conducted immediately after the Electors have already voted and come out of the Polling Booth Stations.
The Petitioners state that, if the Petitioners are to conduct the Exit Polls on 4/2/2017, the Petitioners have to organize the workforce and the resources well in advance and latest by 2/2/2017, failing which, even if positive clarification is received by the Respondent No. 2 just before the 4th of February 2017 , it will not be possible for the Petitioners to do an Exit Poll on the mass level that the Petitioners intend to do and are otherwise fully poised to carry out.
The petitioners are seeking that they be allowed to conduct the poll without publishing the results during the ban period and publishing them later.
