Due to age and illness, many senior voters face difficulties in exercising their right to vote, affecting the overall voting percentage. Shrikant Deshpande, Additional Chief Secretary and Chief Electoral Officer of the state, informed in a press conference on Friday that the Election Commission of India (ECI) will provide the facility of voting from home for senior citizens and disabled voters above 80 years of age.
Deshpande stated, "Often, senior citizens are unable to participate in the voting process due to their age and illness. This initiative is being implemented by the Election Commission on a priority basis to ensure that no one is deprived of voting rights, and senior citizens can actively participate in the voting process. Under this initiative, senior citizens listed in the voter registry will be provided with application form number 12-D, which must be filled and submitted to the district election returning officer within five days after the election is declared. The final decision on this request will be made by the collector, following which a temporary polling station will be set up at the voter's residence for actual voting."
Although this initiative provides an opportunity for senior voters, Deshpande appealed to senior citizens who can go to the polling station to vote and set an example for others. He further emphasised that elections are a celebration of democracy and that voting strengthens democracy.
Meanwhile, for the first time, all polling stations will have display boards with details of contesting candidates' wealth and criminal cases for voters to make an informed choice before they cast their vote, Deshpande said. This step is in line with complete disclosure that the Election Commission has underscored for voters to take an informed decision, he added.
He said that this data is in the public domain on the Election Commission website and the same will be put outside the polling station.
