First time voters are likely to play a decisive role in 2018 Karnataka Assembly polls as across the state over 50 lakh voters have been included in the voters’ list after 2013 assembly polls.
According to Sanjiv Kumar, Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka, over 4.9 crore persons are eligible to vote in the 2018 polls compared to 4.36 crore in 2013. He said further inclusion in the electoral list before elections is expected to be in the range of 10 to 15 lakh.
Mr. Kumar formally set the stage for the Assembly polls by announcing the Draft Electoral Rolls (DER) of all the 224 Vidhana Sabha constituencies on Monday. The tenure of the present Karnataka Assembly ends on May 28, 2018.
On the possible date of polls in Karnataka, Mr. Kumar said that a report on the annual examination dates, major festivals would be submitted to the Election Commission of India. The Chief Election Commissioner will take a call on poll dates after examining all the possibilities.
Allaying fears over alleged tampering of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), Mr. Kumar said: “Though the Election Commission challenged proving tampering of EVMs, no one came forward. However, we are offering a demonstration to all political parties to clear their apprehension about tampering,” he said.
As additional precaution, voter verifiable paper audit trial (VVPAT) will be introduced in the coming polls. VVPAT will help electorates to verify whether they have cast their vote in favour of the candidate they intended to through EVM, he said.
Replying to a query on apprehension by political parties on bogus voting, Mr. Kumar said that with electorates and political parties actively participating in the process of revision of electoral rolls, which will commence from December 6, 2017, and end by January 20, 2018, there was no possibility of non-eligible voters sneaking into the rolls.
He appealed to political parties to appoint Booth Level Agents for each polling station, who would be associated with Booth Level Officers during the special campaign scheduled to be held from December 3, to December 17, 2018.
Assuring that the website ceokarnataka.nic.in will be made bilingual (English and Kannada) for the convenience of electorates, he said that voters can find out whether their names are there in the draft electoral rolls on the website. “Don’t miss the opportunity to register as a voter and ensure that you are enrolled in only one place,” he told people.
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