The Maharashtra government has declared a paid holiday on December 2 for employees of different establishments, businesses and other workplaces to enable them to vote in elections to municipal councils and nagar panchayats.
According to a government resolution (GR) issued on Friday, employees in the districts where voting will take place on Tuesday (December 2) are entitled to get paid leave to exercise their franchise.
Move aims to prevent denial of voting rights
Elections to 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats (town councils), spread across Maharashtra, will be held in the first phase of the long-pending urban and rural local body polls.
Industries, Energy and Labour Departments said the decision was taken to ensure that all eligible citizens are able to exercise their franchise, noting that in previous elections some establishments failed to provide paid leave or time-off, depriving many people of their voting right.
The GR also cited provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which mandate paid leave for voters on polling day.
Holiday applicable even if workplace is outside constituency
The holiday directive will apply to all workers, employees and officers who are voters in the polling areas, irrespective of whether their workplace is located within or outside the constituency.
Establishments under the Labour Department, including factories, shops, hotels, commercial establishments, IT companies, malls and retail outlets, must comply with the directive. Those providing essential or continuous services must grant two to three hours of special leave if a full-day holiday was not feasible, the GR stated.
Non-compliance may attract action
The government has warned that failure to grant paid leave or adequate time-off will attract action if complaints are received.
The GR included a detailed list of municipal councils and nagar panchayats across districts where polling will take place on December 2.
More local body polls to follow
The first round of polling will be followed by polls to 336 Panchayat Samitis, 32 Zilla Parishads and 29 municipal corporations, including Mumbai -- the schedule for which is yet to be announced by the State Election Commission.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
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