Sabarmati Inmates to vote to elect 'sevaks'

Just as it seemed that the fever of elections had died with the culmination of panchayat polls, another round of elections at the Sabarmati Central Jail in Ahmedabad is all set to ignite the poll bandwagon in a year in which the state will go to polls.   

Sunday will see as many as 3300 inmates of Sabarmati Jail cast their ballots to elect nine 'sevaks'. The prisoners' panchayat elections, as it is known, will be held from 8:30 am to 4 pm. The elections are held once in a year and the nine elected members are called 'sevaks'.     

Initially, 57 nominations had been received for the polls. Following the scrutiny of nomination forms, only 22 nominations were deemed to contest the elections. On the final day, seven inmates withdrew their candidature to leave the battlefield tantalisingly poised with fifteen inmates vying for nine seats.

Elections will be held to choose a candidate for the kitchen department, canteen, bakery, meeting, carpenter, cultural and
industries.

According to the rules of jail books, only convicts are eligible to contest the polls with under-trials being barred. Among those convicts undergoing life imprisonment, the convicts must have undergone three years of imprisonment and should be well-mannered. Those inmates who are undergoing jail term for a specific period must have completed 25% of their term to be eligible enough to contest the polls. Those who have contested the elections once are a strict 'no' for the second time.