Page 12 - Election Commission Of India

Bihar polls: EC issues vouchers for parties' free airtime on DD, AIR

EC stated that free broadcasting and telecasting facilities, with a base time of 45 minutes, have been allotted on both Doordarshan and AIR for each party

Bihar polls: ECI directs enforcement agencies to prevent use of money power

Poll body said that expenditure Observers have already been deployed to monitor the election expenses incurred by the Candidates

ECI makes pre-certification mandatory for political ads on social media

The Election Commission has directed all national and state parties, as well as contesting candidates, to obtain MCMC approval before publishing or airing any political advertisements

EC makes pre-certification of political ads mandatory ahead of Bihar polls

ECI stated that every registered national and state political party, as well as all contesting candidates, are required to submit applications to the MCMC for pre-certification

Maharashtra SEC asks EC to defer voter list revision until local body polls

The Maharashtra State Election Commission has requested the Election Commission to defer its plan, if any, to roll out Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state until January 2026, citing the upcoming local body polls. The State Election Commission (SEC), in its letter dated September 9, stated that officials will be busy conducting the elections to local bodies. "The honourable Supreme Court of India has vide its order dated 6th May 2025 directed the State Election Commission to make an endeavour to conclude the elections to local bodies in Maharashtra within a period of four months while granting liberty to the State Election Commission to seek extension of time in appropriate cases," it said. Elections to all 29 municipal corporations, all 247 municipal councils, 42 nagar panchayats out of 147 town councils, 32 out of 34 zilla parishads, and 336 out of 351 panchayat samitis are due in Maharashtra, a senior official said on Monday. The SEC also pointed out

ECI allows 12 alternative IDs for voting, special measure for veiled women

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said Aanganwadi workers will assist in verifying the identity of 'burqa-clad' or voters in 'ghunghat' at all Bihar polling booths

Don't misuse AI-based tools in Bihar poll campaigning: EC to parties

The Election Commission has warned political parties against misusing AI to create deepfakes or distort information in the Bihar assembly polls. In a statement on Thursday, the poll authority also reminded parties of its instructions to prominently label Al-generated or synthetic content being shared for campaigning through their social media platforms or in the form of advertisements. Parties, star campaigners and candidates should prominently declare that the content is "Al-Generated", "Digitally Enhanced", or a "Synthetic Content". It cautioned that a strict watch on social media posts is being kept to ensure that the election atmosphere is not vitiated. "The Commission advised the parties against misuse of AI based tools to create deep fakes that distort information or propagate misinformation over social media platforms emphasizing the need to uphold the integrity of the electoral process," it said. Amid the last Lok Sabha elections, EC had come out with a set of directives

EC couldn't tell how many non-citizens removed from Bihar roll: Congress

The Congress on Tuesday said much was made of the need of the SIR exercise to remove non-citizens from the electoral roll but the Election Commission has not had the integrity or the courage to enlighten the country on how many such non-citizens in Bihar were removed from the voter list. The opposition party also said if the poll body had informed as to how many such non-citizens in Bihar were removed from the electoral roll, it would have been even more exposed than it already is. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh noted that the Supreme Court hearing on the Bihar Special Intensive Revision (SIR) resumes Tuesday. He also shared on X an analysis of the SIR exercise published in a newspaper. "This fine analysis shows that the entire SIR exercise bulldozed through by the Election Commission has failed on all three counts of completeness, equity, and accuracy," Ramesh said. "Much was made of the need of the SIR exercise to remove non-citizens from the .

Bihar Assembly Elections 2025: Check phase-wise constituency list here

Out of 243 seats, 121 constituencies will go to the polls in the first phase, while the remaining 122 constituencies will vote in the second phase

Bihar Assembly election schedule to be announced today, EC presser at 4 pm

The Election Commission will announce Bihar Assembly poll dates today at 4 pm; parties want post-Chhath polls for higher voter turnout as Assembly term ends on November 22

ECI reviews preparedness for Bihar polls, to hold press conference today

All DEOs and SPs were instructed to monitor social media for fake news and to respond swiftlywith appropriate legal action, if required

Bihar BJP seeks single-phase polls, urges verification for burqa-clad women

Bihar BJP president Dilip Jaiswal on Saturday urged the Election Commission to conduct the upcoming assembly polls in one or two phases and ensure that faces of women turning up at booths in burqas were tallied with voter cards. Jaiswal, who led a BJP delegation that met the visiting EC team headed by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, also requested adequate deployment of paramilitary forces in areas that were vulnerable to booth capture and intimidation of voters. "We have urged the EC to conduct the elections in one or two phases. The election process need not be staggered. Also, tallying of faces of voters, especially burqa-clad women, must be ensured with respective EPIC cards so that only genuine voters get to exercise their franchise," he told reporters after the meeting. "We have also requested that paramilitary forces be deployed in villages with a heavy population of weaker sections like extremely backward classes, a few days in advance and a flag march-like exerci

Political parties to hold talks with EC team in Patna on October 4

Political parties in poll-bound Bihar are scheduled to hold talks with a team of the Election Commission here on Saturday, an official said. The EC team, headed by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, is likely to kick off its two-day visit to the state on Saturday, and receive feedback from representatives of recognised national and state parties. Dates for the assembly polls are likely to be announced by the EC soon. The BJP, Congress, JD(U), RJD and CPI(ML) Liberation are prominent among the parties, which will be permitted to send "up to three representatives each" for the meeting. The poll panel had on September 30 published its final electoral roll in Bihar, containing details of 7.42 crore voters, a drop of more than 47 lakh since June, when the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) was launched. While the BJP-led NDA has been of the view that the exercise was needed to remove "impurities" from the voters' list, in which illegal foreign immigrants may have been included in

EC to release final voter list of Bihar today; poll schedule likely soon

The final electoral roll will be published after Bihar's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, with the election schedule expected next week and polls likely post-Chhath

EC to deploy 470 observers for upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, bypolls

The Election Commission will deploy 470 officers as its observers for the upcoming assembly elections in Bihar and seven assembly bypolls to ensure a level playing field in the electoral contest. In a statement on Sunday, the poll authority said out of the 470, 320 are IAS officers, 60 are IPS and 90 are from other services. General, police and expenditure observers are deployed during elections to serve as eyes and ears of the election watchdog. A briefing of these observers is scheduled here on October 3, a day before the EC visits Bihar to review poll preparedness there. The term of the 243-member Bihar assembly ends on November 22 and polls are likely to take place in November.

350-400 CAPF companies to be deployed for Bihar Assembly elections

Around 350-400 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and other state police units are expected to be deployed for providing security during the forthcoming assembly elections in Bihar, officials said on Friday. A single CAPF company has an operational strength of about 70-80 personnel. The exact dates and the number of phases for the 243-member assembly polls are expected to be announced by the Election Commission (EC) in early October. The earmarked companies have been asked to initiate de-induction from their place of deployment and move to Bihar. These companies include units from forces guarding the international borders, the officials told PTI. The units will be added or subtracted once the EC directs the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for a specific number of companies, they said. The maximum number of companies will be drawn from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Other CAPFs like the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF

Rajya Sabha polls for 4 J-K seats vacant since 2021 on Oct 24: EC

Biennial elections to fill four Rajya Sabha seats from Jammu and Kashmir, which have been lying vacant since 2021, will be held on October 24, the Election Commission said on Wednesday. Separately, Rajya Sabha bypoll to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of AAP member from Punjab Sanjeev Arora will also be held on October 24. He had resigned following his election to the Punjab assembly. His Rajya Sabha term was to otherwise end on April 9, 2028. The Rajya Sabha elections for the four Jammu and Kashmir seats are being held nearly a year after the assembly polls were held in the union territory. MLAs elect Rajya Sabha members of their respective states. The union territory has been unrepresented in the Upper House of Parliament since February 15, 2021, the day when Ghulam Nabi Azad and Nazir Ahmed Laway finished their term. Two other members, Fayaz Ahmed Mir and Shamsheer Singh Manhas, had completed their term on February 10, the same year. While announcing the schedule

EC asks state poll officers to get ready for SIR rollout by Sept 30

The Election Commission has asked its state election officers to be ready for the SIR by September 30, in an indication that the poll authority could launch the voter list cleanup exercise as early as October-November. According to officials, at a conference of state chief electoral officers (CEOs) here earlier this month, the EC top brass asked them to be ready for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) rollout in the next 10 to 15 days. But for the sake of greater clarity, the deadline of September 30 was set. The CEOs have been told to keep voter lists of their states, published after the last SIR, ready. Several state CEOs have already put up the voter lists published after their last SIR on their websites. The website of the Delhi CEO has the voter list from 2008, when the last intensive revision took place in the national capital. In Uttarakhand, the last SIR took place in 2006 and the electoral roll from that year is now on the state CEO's website. The last SIR in states wil

Rahul Gandhi accuses EC of withholding data from CID in Karnataka vote row

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused the Election Commission of India of not providing information sought by the Karnataka CID regarding the alleged 'vote chori' in that state. Rahul, who arrived in Wayanad on Friday along with his mother Sonia Gandhi, told reporters here that Karnataka CID has sent several letters to the EC seeking information about the numbers used in the 'vote chori', but the poll panel is not providing it. Gyanesh Kumar is the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and he is not providing the information sought by the police, the Congress MP claimed. "There can be no bigger indictment of the CEC than this. The police is asking for information, and he is not providing it. This is not my statement. It is a fact. It is there in black and white," he said. Rahul further said that the Congress will show evidence of the alleged 'vote chori' "in such a manner that no one will have any doubt that PM Narendra Modi did it and won the election". "We are going to reveal

Rahul takes a dig at ECI with Karnataka data, repeats 'vote chori' charge

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday reiterated his "vote chori" allegations and took a swipe at the Election Commission, calling it an "election watchman" who "stayed awake, watched the theft, and protected the thieves". His remarks came a day after he ramped up his attack on the issue of vote theft, accusing Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of protecting those who "destroyed democracy". To buttress his allegation, he cited data from a Karnataka assembly constituency to claim that votes of Congress supporters were being systematically deleted. The Election Commission dubbed the allegations "incorrect and baseless" and said. "No deletion of any vote can be done online by any member of the public, as misconceived by Gandhi." In a post in Hindi on X on Friday, Gandhi said, "Wake up at 4 a.m. Eliminate two voters in 36 seconds, Then go back to sleep - this is how vote theft happens!" "Chunaav ka chawkidaar jaagta raha, chori dekhta raha, choron ko bachata raha (The electi