Page 9 - Chief Election Commissioner

Chhattisgarh Assembly polls: Senior citizens, disabled can vote from home

Voters above the age of 80 and persons with disabilities (more than 40%) will have the facility to cast their votes from home; such voters will be provided with a pick-up and drop-off facility

People above 80 yrs, PwDs can vote from home in Chhattisgarh polls: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Saturday said persons above 80 years of age and those with more than 40 per cent disability will be able to cast their votes from home through postal ballots in the upcoming Assembly elections in Chhattisgarh. There are more than 2 lakh voters above the age of 80 in the state, he said. "Voters above the age of 80 years will have the facility to cast their votes from home and the same facility will be available to the persons with disabilities (more than 40 per cent). For this, they have to fill form 12D within five days of notification of the election," Kumar said at a press conference here. These voters will also have a pick drop facility to the polling stations, he said. He said an intensive drive will be carried out to enrol as voters those who had been left out in five particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs) during the ongoing special summary revision (SSR)-2. Special summary revision of electoral rolls has been extended up to .

CEC Rajiv Kumar, T'gana minister named in FIR for alleged affidavit tampering

An FIR was registered against Telangana Excise Minister V Srinivas Goud, after being referred by a Hyderabad court, in Mahabubnagar district for allegedly "tampering" his 2018 Assembly election affidavit, police said on Saturday. While Goud was named as the first accused, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and several other officials have been made co-accused. The court made the reference to police on a private complaint made by a resident of Mahabubnagar. The FIR, registered on August 11, also mentions former Telangana Chief Electoral Officer Shashank Goel and several other officials as accused who the complainant alleged colluded with Goud and closed the election affidavit with no further action required. The matter was referred to the police by the court for trial of criminal cases relating to elected MPs and MLAs in Hyderabad. The complainant alleged that Goud, MLA from Mahabubngar, "tampered" with the election affidavit by suppressing facts.

Centre moves bill to drop CJI from poll officers' selection process

The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, 2023, has been listed for introduction in the Rajya Sabha

Time to use tech-driven methods to allow overseas voters to vote: CEC

The time has come to use technology-driven methods such as e-postal ballot to allow eligible overseas Indian voters to participate in elections here, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on Friday. He also said that the timely and continued delivery of credible electoral outcomes since 1952 was an important ingredient of worldwide acknowledgement of India's comprehensive national power, especially in an era of "democratic backsliding". Kumar made these remarks while addressing the 2022-batch Indian Foreign Service officer-trainees on the theme "India-the Mother of Democracies and Role of ECI" at the Nirvachan Sadan here. Speaking on the common challenges being faced by election management bodies in the conduct of free and fair elections, the chief election commissioner referred to the rising threat from fake news and deepfakes on social media derailing the election narratives. According to sources, when asked about voting by overseas voters, Kumar said that the time has com

BJP, Cong seek EC ban on campaigning by leaders of other side in K'taka

With the election campaign in Karnataka witnessing a bitter war of words between the BJP and the Congress, both the parties rushed to the Election Commission Friday seeking ban on electioneering by top leaders of the other side. While the BJP sought an FIR and a bar on campaigning by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress demanded restrictions on Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Kharge is under attack from the BJP after he likened Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a "poisonous snake" during a poll rally. Shah and Yogi have been accused of flaring communal passions and creating disharmony in the poll-bound state with their statements against minorities. Union minister Bhupender Yadav led a BJP delegation and urged the poll body to file a criminal case against Kharge and bar him from campaigning in the Karnataka assembly polls. He later told reporters that Kharge's comment was not merely a slip of the tongue but part of the ...

Karnataka Assembly elections to be held on May 10, results on May 13

CEC Rajiv Kumar said the elections have been scheduled on a Wednesday, and not on a Monday or Friday, to encourage greater participation of voters

ECI chief Rajiv Kumar says it gives 'Agnipariksha' in every election

Election Commission of India (ECI) gives 'Agnipariskha' every election despite having conducted 400 Assembly elections, 17 general elections, and 16 Presidential and Vice Presidential polls

LIVE: ED gets Manish Sisodia's remand till March 17 in excise policy case

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Flawed reports causes harm to credibility of poll management bodies: Kumar

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Thursday flagged "flawed" reports of some agencies and organisations, saying they cause more damage to the credibility of election management bodies as the pioneering work done by them finds no place in such surveys. Kumar urged the EMBs to come up with essential parameters and standards which should guide such surveys and rankings. He was addressing the 3rd International Conference on the theme 'Inclusive Elections and Elections Integrity' in a virtual format. The CEC along with fellow election commissioners were in Bengaluru where they also assessed the poll preparedness of poll-bound Karnataka. He lamented that countries with low inclusivity are ranked high. "The flawed report causes more damage to the credibility of EMBs," he added. The CEC urged the participating EMBs to come up with essential parameters and standards which should guide such surveys... countries with low inclusivity are ranked high ," the poll panel said in a ...

Free and fair

Law must establish Election Commission's independence

After CEC, will there also be a change in how judges are appointed?

The govt may now come back with a modified version of the NJAC bill whereby the practice of judges appointing themselves is stopped

Panel of PM, CJI and Opposition leaders to pick poll commissioners: SC

The bench noted that several political parties had come to power but none framed a law/process for appointments to the ECI

Landmark orders: Kejriwal on SC verdicts on appointment of ECs, Adani issue

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal hailed the Supreme Court decisions on Thursday on the appointment of election commissioners and matters involving the business empire of industrialist Gautam Adani as landmark orders. The apex court ruled on Thursday that the appointments of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners will be made by the president on the advise of a committee comprising the prime Minister, the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha and the chief justice of India. In a separate matter, it ordered the setting up of a six-member committee headed by former top court judge AM Sapre to probe the recent share crash of the Adani Group triggered by short-seller Hindenburg Research's fraud allegations and other regulatory aspects related to the stock markets. "Truly landmark orders by Hon'ble SC on both EC and Adani issues. We welcome both the orders," Kejriwal said in a tweet. Earlier in the day, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), headed by Kejriwal, said the apex

Supreme Court ruling will play key role in free and fair elections: Oppn

Opposition parties on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court's ruling on the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners, saying the landmark judgment would pave the way for free and fair elections in the country. The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners will be done by the President on the advise of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India. "Welcoming the historic Supreme Court verdict on Election Commission. Insulating EC from Government influence & dependence will secure the integrity of the electoral process. A truly Independent EC alone can fulfill the Constitutional mandate of conducting free and fair elections," Congress leader Anand Sharma said on Twitter. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the verdict is a victory of democracy. "Supreme Court's landmark order is a democratic victory! .

Derek O'Brien applauds SC judgement on the appointments of the CEC and ECs

The "Extremely Compromised EC" can now become "Extremely Competent EC", TMC MP Derek O'Brien said on Thursday, reacting to a Supreme Court ruling on the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners. The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners will be done by the President on the advise of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India. "HUGE. So Extremely Comprised (EC) can again strive to become Extremely Competent (EC)," O'Brien said in a tweet. A five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice KM Joseph, also made an appeal to the Parliament and the Union of India to constitute a separate and independent secretariat for dealing with the expenditure of the Election Commission of India to cut it from any financial obligation to the government.

CEC, ECs to be appointed by Prez on advice of PM, Opposition leader, CJI

A Constitution Bench comprising Justices KM Joseph, Ajay Rastogi, Aniruddha Bose, Hrishikesh Roy, and CT Ravikumar said this practice will continue until a law in this regard is made by the Parliament

Election commissioners to be appointed by PM, opposition leader, CJI: SC

Justice KM Joseph, while reading the judgement, said that this will be followed until the Parliament comes up with a law in this regard

Nagaland's chief electoral officer calls people to vote in upcoming polls

Nagaland Chief Electoral Officer V Shashank Shekhar on Wednesday called upon people to exercise their franchise in the upcoming assembly elections in the state. He also urged everyone to collectively endeavour to ensure that the entire election process takes place in a peaceful atmosphere, without any violence of any kind. Observing the 13th National Voters' Day, he said, We should always respect the valuable right to vote and never take it for granted. It is the responsibility of everyone, including those getting the right to vote for the first time, to exercise their franchise with utmost sincerity and also inspire others to do so, he said. The CEO hoped that first-time voters will experience the thrill and joy of being part of the democratic exercise. Elections to the 60-member assembly in the state will be held on February 27. The CEO said Nagaland has 13,17,632 voters. He said the Election Commission of India (ECI) is putting in considerable effort to ensure free and fair .

CEC flags threat from deep fake narratives to elections worldwide

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Monday flagged threats from deep fake narratives to elections worldwide