This one is a good initiative. The Maharashtra police and election commission have decided that they will only allow 'good character' people as the polling agent during the upcoming Maharashtra civic polls.
For the cops think that the presence of a polling agent with past criminal records might generate pressure on voters.
BCCL/representational image
Shrikant Pathak, deputy commissioner of police (special branch), told Pune Mirror, "We have asked all political parties to do a character verification of polling agents who they are going to depute in polling booths across the city. Each candidate should have a character verification done from his or her side. Or, even we can do it if they (candidates or political parties) share their list of agents after submission to the Pune Municipal Corporation's (PMC) election office. We want to conduct a fair election. We think voters might get intimidated by polling agents with a criminal past."
The election officials are yet to be intimated. Satish Kulkarni, election officer of PMC's election department, said, "In each polling booth, there is permission to allow one representative from each party. But, the police have not shared information of this mandatory character verification with us. We have to check."
BCCL/representational image
The contesting parties, however, do not think that is not a feasible idea. Ashok Rathi, executive president of the Nationalist Congress party (NCP), shared, "The purpose of character verification is a noble one. But, I have serious doubts about the implementation of the process.
Each party deputes its polling agents on the booth, the numbers often going up to more than 2,000. If we consider the polling agents of the four major parties, the numbers will go beyond 10,000. Is it possible for the police to verify the particulars of so many people in such a short time?" Cops have failed to provide certificates of around a 1,000 aspirants within the time limit. How can they manage this?"
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Hemant Sambus, city president of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and a candidate, added, "Polling agents are party workers and they participate in different political agitations or protests. So, there are chances of cases being filed against them. But, they are not criminals. I think the police should make clear-cut guidelines about whether they are looking at political charges or criminal ones. No party appoints polling agents with a criminal record. The cops need to specify cases."
Vinayak Nimhan, Shiv Sena city unit chief, also criticised the decision, saying, "It is not a practical decision. This was not there during the earlier election. There is no infrastructure to carry out verification of polling agents. I don't know why the police have issued such an order. There is no need of verification for polling agents."
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Earlier, the SEC had issued an order that every polling booth will have a display board carrying a summary of the affidavits filed by all candidates in the fray for the civic elections in the state. Voters will be able to check the candidates' antecedents before they go to vote. The details on display will include educational background, criminal records if any, and details of assets and liabilities of the candidate. According to the SEC directives, all 10 municipal corporations and 25 zilla parishads have been told to ensure that there are display boards outside the polling stations. The same information will be shared on the website of the civic body as well as published in the newspapers.