Bengaluru:
After the Election Commission received several complaints that IT/BT companies based in Bengaluru had not announced leave to the employees to vote on May 10, Wednesday, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) warned of action against private companies that fail to give leave to employees for elections.
The BBMP, in a release on Tuesday, stated, “In view of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly election scheduled on 10 May, to facilitate voters to cast their votes under the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 section 135(B) 1, grant of paid holiday to the employees on the day of poll is mandatory on Wednesday.”
“This applies to every person employed in any business trade, industrial undertaking, or any other establishments and entitled to vote at elections to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly of a State shall, on the day of the poll, be granted a holiday,” the release added.
Speaking to The Hindu, BBMP chief Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath said that they have already received several complaints that various companies have not announced a holiday. “In this regard, we have already issued an order to grant holiday to employees on voting day. However, a few companies are not following it. Any establishment that is non-compliant to this order, the CEO of the company will be prosecuted,” he said.
The release also stated in case of any violation in this regard by any organisation strict legal action will be initiated against such organisation as per the Representation of People Act 1951 and other relevant laws.
The BBMP has advised the citizens to report such incidents by dialing 1950 (toll-free number).
Karnataka Inc declares election holiday to employees
Businesses have declared a closed holiday on May 10, Wednesday, to millions of employees, comprising techies, ITeS executives, other professionals, start-up employees, MSME staff, garment workers and construction labourers, in order to encourage them to cast their votes without any inconvenience.
Top-league IT services providers such as Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and Wipro have confirmed that their offices in the State would remain closed so that their employees would be able to exercise their franchise at ease. Karnataka has a pool of close to 2 million tech workers.
Almost all tech and manufacturing MNCs and research and development outfits have also announced a closed holiday on account of the Assembly Election in Karnataka. Employees of KPMG, PwC, Deloitte and EY are also given a holiday on the day of voting. State and central PSUs in the state will also remain closed on Wednesday.
According to various trade bodies, Kassia, FKCCI and BCIC, over 6 lahks medium, small, micro-enterprises that employ millions of workers have also exempted them from work on the voting day.
However, some private companies had stated that with the work-from-home option, many employees are back in their hometowns, including out of the State. “Those who are from Karnataka can take paid leave to vote by applying for it,” said an HR representative of a company.
