the goan I network
VALPOI
Voters at a polling booth in Dhave-Sattari were left stunned after election officials insisted on the Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) as the only proof of identity to enable them exercise their franchise.
The incident took place when voters went to cast their votes at a polling booth in Dhave and while many of them did not bring their EPIC, they had other documents to prove their identity as voters.
The Election Commission of India had directed that all electors in all constituencies who have been issued EPIC have to produce the EPIC for their identification at the polling station before casting their votes.
If electors were unable to produce the EPIC, the ECI had allowed them produce one of 11 other photo identity documents to establish their identity.
The list of eleven documents approved were passport, driving license, service identity cards with photograph issued to employees by Central/State Govt./PSUs/Public Limited Companies, passbooks with photograph issued by Bank/Post Office, PAN Card, Smart Card issued by RGI under NPR, MNREGA Job Card, Health Insurance Smart Card issued under the scheme of Ministry of Labour, Pension document with photograph, Official identity cards issued to
MPs/MLAs/MLCs, and Aadhaar Card.
Despite these optional documents as proof of identity, election staff at the Dhave polling booth insisted on the EPIC as the only proof of identity.
Left with no option, many voters were compelled to return home and get their EPICs and many complained that they were being harassed by election officials.
Elsewhere, voting was delayed in two polling booths as EVMs were found faulty at Mauxi and Koparde in Sattari.
Voting was stopped for about 30 minutes, as elections authorities made efforts to replace the faulty EVMs.
Meanwhile, elections were conducted peacefully at all 102 polling stations in
Sattari taluka, which consist of 47 polling stations in Valpoi constituency and 55 polling stations in Poriem
constituency.
Ansolem residents vote after
calling off boycott threat
VALPOI: After threatening to boycott the Lok Sabha polls, voters of Ansolem villagers in Bhironda-Sattari changed their minds and exercised their franchise on Tuesday following assurances by Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant to fulfill their demands.
Voters of Ansolem had initially decided to boycott elections in protest, after their demands for a tarred road in the village had been ignored by different governments.
Election officials had earlier visited the area to pacify the locals and later, Dr Sawant assured to fulfil their demand shortly after the polls. Satisfied by the assurances, over 200 of the 250 registered voters took part in the elections on Tuesday.
