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Chandigarh: All necessary arrangements have been made by the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer Punjab to conduct the Lok Sabha by-election of Jalandhar in a free, fair and peaceful manner. Giving information to the media, Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C said that the election staff is peaceful, independent and fair. Working round the clock to ensure elections.
He said that there are total 16,21,759 voters in which 8,44,904 are male, 7,76,855 female, 10,286 disabled persons, 1850 service voters, 73 foreign/immigrant voters and 41 transgenders, while 19 candidates are in the field including 15 There are men and 4 women. He said that out of total 19 candidates, three are from national parties, one from a provincial party, seven from unrecognized parties while eight are independent candidates. He said that the five candidates contesting the election have criminal background.
He also informed that 1972 polling stations have been set up and all the polling stations are being webcasted. Additional cameras will be installed outside the polling stations of places with more than three polling stations which are 166 in Jalandhar Parliamentary Constituency and 542 sensitive polling stations have been identified out of which 16 have been declared as highly sensitive.
He said that 4839 ballot units, 2927 control units and 2973 VVPAT are being used in these elections. While there will be 45 model polling stations and the polling stations will be managed by women. Facilities like drinking water, tents and chairs, at least one wheel chair will be ensured at each polling station. Apart from this, each polling station will have materials as per Covid-19 norms including gloves, sanitizer, soap and masks, while dustbins and colored bags will be kept for disposal of Covid waste material. He said that food and refreshment will be provided to all the polling staff.
He further said that postal ballot facility has been provided to senior citizens above 80 years of age, disabled persons and Covid patients to vote from their homes and 703 GPS based vehicles are being used for transporting EVMs. And 27 flying squad team is keeping vigil round the clock through web cameras.
He also said that after the implementation of the Model Election Code, 1083 complaints have been received on the National Grievance Redressal Portal, of which 989 have been disposed of, while 94 are under process. He further informed that 1381 complaints were received on the V-Vigil app, out of which 1142 were found to be valid and resolved within the allotted 100 minutes.
Giving information about law and order, Sibin C said that the police stationed in the parliamentary constituency are conducting a thorough search to stop the activities related to liquor, drugs and money transactions to ensure free and fair election process. .
CEO Punjab also informed that the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the 48 hours before the elections has come into force from 6 PM on May 8, 2023. He also said that in view of the elections, Jalandhar district has been declared a dry area from May 8, 2023 at 6 pm i.e. till May 10, 2023 and during this period there will be a complete ban on the sale of liquor in the district.
He also informed that liquor shops within a radius of 3 km in the neighboring districts have also been declared as dry areas during this time.
He said that after the end of campaigning, illegal gatherings and public meetings in polling areas/constituencies have been banned. Meanwhile, as per the instructions of the Election Commission of India, the Punjab Government has declared a holiday in Jalandhar district on May 10, 2023 in view of the Lok Sabha by-election so that voters can exercise their right to vote without any difficulty. As per the provisions of Section 135B of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, the employees of industrial establishments, commercial establishments, shops and other establishments shall have a holiday with pay on the date of polling in Jalandhar i.e. May 10, 2023.
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