In a major relief to Kashmiri migrant voters residing in Jammu and Udhampur, the Election Commission (EC) has done away with the complex procedure of filling Form M to be eligible to vote.
For migrants living outside these areas, such as Delhi and other places, Form M will still be mandatory but with a provision for self-attestation instead of that by a gazetted officer, making the process much simpler.
Through Form M, a Kashmiri migrant had to apply for transfer of his or her vote from Kashmir to a polling station outside the Kashmir Valley. Filing of this form was mandatory for displaced voters from the Valley ahead of every Lok Sabha and Assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir.
Instead, the Kashmiri migrant voters would now be mapped with the special polling stations falling in the zones they are registered or residing in, the EC announced on Friday. The decision was taken after a meeting chaired by CEC Rajiv Kumar along with Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu on Friday, the poll body said in a statement.
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‘Cumbersome process’
The EC noted that the Form M procedure subjected the migrant voters to “additional bureaucratic hurdles”. The process of filling out the form is often complex and cumbersome, requiring specific documentation, proof of migration status and attestation by a gazetted officer, it said.
“The commission, after taking into consideration the representations received from several Kashmiri migrant groups regarding the scheme, feedback from the political parties and comments of the Chief Electoral Officer, notified the scheme for Kashmiri migrants to vote in person at transitory camps and voting by means of postal ballot pertaining to the ongoing general election to Lok Sabha 2024,” it said.
In order to avoid impersonation at the special polling stations though, the voters will have to carry either their voter ID card or any of the alternative documents prescribed by the commission for identification.
“There is no change in the postal ballot facility and the same continues to be as notified earlier. They have to fill out Form 12C to seek a postal ballot. Form 12C can be filled by any migrant, no matter where he is residing – at Jammu, Udhampur or Delhi, Mumbai, Noida,” the EC said.
General elections will be held in the Union Territory on April 19 (Udhampur) and April 26 (Jammu), May 7 (Anantnag-Rajouri), May 13 (Srinagar) and May 20 (Baramulla).
