What is an electoral roll?
An electoral roll is a list of all eligible citizens who are entitled to cast their vote in an election. The electoral rolls are prepared assembly constituency wise. An electoral roll for any assembly constituency is subdivided into parts corresponding with the polling booths.
Find out if you are eligible to vote?
To exercise your franchise, the first and foremost requirement is that your name should be in the electoral roll. Without your name registered in the relevant part for the area where you ordinarily reside in the assembly constituency, you will not be allowed to exercise your franchise. Therefore, it is your duty to find out whether your name has been registered or not.
How to check your name in the electoral rolls and polling station?
As an elector you should immediately check whether your name has been included in the electoral roll of the constituency where you reside or not. You can find out this information from the Electoral Registration Officer of your area. Electoral rolls in all major cities have now been displayed on official websites also. Assistance booths have been posted outside polling stations and political parties also maintain voter helpdesks at a distance, you can get help in locating it from them.
What if your name is missing?
Your name may be missing in the electoral rolls for a host of reasons. Don’t be disappointed, and make it a point to also check your name in the supplementary list.
Will my polling booth remain the same after delimitation?
There may be a possibility that your usual polling booth may have changed, post the delimitation exercise. The polling station will be mentioned on the slips that you receive from political parties or check at the school nearest to your residence. The Election Commission of India has decided to generally have a maximum of 1,200 electors per booth. The polling booths are so setup that no voter should ordinarily travel more than two kms to reach the polling booth.
What should I carry along to the polling station?
The Election Commission of India has made voter identification mandatory at the time of poll. The electors have to identify themselves with either Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) or any other documentary proof as prescribed by the Commission like PAN card, driving licence, bank pass book.
What can a voter do to contain bogus voting and poll violations by political parties?
Voters can report electoral violations and bogus voting. At the booth level, he can complain to the presiding officer and file a written complaint.
What will you do if you go to the polling station and decide against voting for any candidate?
If you go to the polling station and don’t find any of the candidates worthy of you vote. You can negate your vote by filling Form 49-O. The form will be available with the presiding officer of the booth.
What is the best time to vote?
Polling stations across the country are open from 7 am till 5 pm. Usually there is not much crowd in the morning, voters may find this time conducive to cast their vote. Considering that the general elections are being held during the summer months, one can beat the scorching heat, by voting early. Moreover, towards the later part of the day, booths get crowded and queues get longer.
What is the advantage of casting your vote early?
Sometimes genuine voters who go to the polling booth late, find that a bogus voter has already cast the vote of his behalf. Voting early in the morning will defeat the designs of those politicians who may want to indulge in the malpractice.
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