No 'NOTA' for Kolkata civic polls voters

Over 37 lakh voters in Saturday's Kolkata Municipal Corporation polls will not be able to exercise 'None of the Above' (NOTA) option as the electronic voting machines (EVMs) to be used don't have the facility.

Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR) - a rights organisation - on Thursday raised the issue with the West Bengal State Election Commission (SEC).

"The State Election Commissioner told us that the existing EVMs do not have that option and a change in the existing municipal laws is required to bring in this option," Ranajit Sur of the APDR said.

"Because of this, the voters are left with no choice but to press the button in favour of any of the candidates even if they don't wish to. This goes against democratic policies," he said.

Criticising the lackadaisical attitude of the poll panel, Sur said his organisation has demanded the SEC to initiate the process of incorporating NOTA button in all EVMs at the earliest.

Around 60 lakh voters opted for the NOTA in Lok Sabha polls where it was introduced for the first time in any parliamentary election following a directive by the Supreme Court.

A total of 37,42,019 voters would exercise their franchise across 4,704 polling stations to decide the fate of 1075 candidates in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation polls. The counting of votes is scheduled for April 28.