The silent period of 48 hours before the polling day has started for the elections to the Telangana Legislative Assembly from 5 p.m. on November 28.
Chief Electoral Officer Vikas Raj has announced this, and asked political parties to refrain from the campaign forthwith.
Through a press conference on Tuesday, Mr. Raj elaborated on the dos and don’ts of the silent period, which allows the voters some tranquil period before elections to mull over the options.
Prohibition is imposed on all forms of election material, campaign, panel discussions and sound bytes which could influence voters, whether on television, or radio or cable networks, Mr. Raj said.
Ban is imposed on exit polls, opinion polls, standard debates and analyses till half an hour after the polls. No advertisement with regard to polling should be aired through electronic and social media, and print media should take certification from the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee.
No bulk SMSes and voice messages may be sent, nor can star campaigners and political leaders address the media during the silent period. No press conferences should be conducted about election matters. Political parties should not conduct any concerts or cultural events. Owing to the imposition of Section 144 of CrPC, no public meetings may be conducted.
Presence of political workers or party leaders from outside their own constituency is not allowed. Political parties may not engage vehicles to carry voters to and from the polling station, as it will be considered a criminal offence. Voter information slips distributed by political parties should be plain, and should not have the candidate’s name, or party’s name or symbol.
Speaking about polling arrangements, Mr. Raj said third randomisation of the polling personnel was under way and would be done by the end of the day. The allotment would be kept in sealed covers and informed to the polling parties only the next day. The engineers deployed by the ECI too, will be present at the distribution, reception and counting centres.
There will be entry into the restricted area around the polling stations, only for one vehicle each for the candidates and their agents/workers. The vehicles should have permits from the District Election Officer displayed on the windscreen.
The agents may follow the EVMs on their own vehicles, especially after the polling. Vehicles carrying the EVMs should carry designated route, and should not stop anywhere enroute.
Political party agents should arrive at the polling stations by 5.30 a.m. on the polling day, 90 minutes before the polling starts. After the mock poll, the VVPAT compartment should be empty and control units should be cleared of the mock poll results, Mr. Raj cautioned the agents. The agents should not touch or go near the EVMs. If they do, the presiding officers reserve the right to get them evicted.
Mr. Raj informed that a total of 27,178 voters — 15,999 senior citizens, 9,459 persons with disabilities, and 1,720 essential services employees — have availed the home voting option. This amounts to 94% of those who applied for the option.
A total 10,191 postal ballots have been downloaded by the service voters, and 1.48 lakh employees on election duty have exercised their postal ballot option. The remaining too may exercise their vote at the facilitation centres.
A postal ballot exchange centre has been set up at the Gachibowli Stadium for all the 119 constituencies. Webcasting will be on at 27,094 polling stations and at 7,571 locations where more crowds are expected, CCTV camera coverage has been arranged even outside the polling stations.
The 35,655 polling stations have been divided into 3,803 sectors, with each sector monitored by the sector officer. The sector officer also have spare EVMs in case of any EVM glitch. They will have magisterial powers and are supported by police forces.
Mr. Vikas Raj has reiterated that voters must carry their Electoral Photo Identity Cards (EPICs) or any of the 12 identity proofs listed by Election Commission. Voter information slip is not a valid identity proof. Mobile phones and electronic gadgets will not be allowed inside the polling station.
Sharing the information about seizures, he said the total value amounted to ₹737 crore, of which ₹320 crore was in cash. Liquor worth ₹125 crore, precious metals worth ₹186 crore, drugs worth ₹40 crore, and other freebies worth ₹84 crore have been seized so far.
Tuesday night will be crucial, and the control rooms will function 24/7, he informed. Vehicles will be monitored throughout the night.
