Maharashtra Assembly Polls: 'Election dates won't clash with festivals', says CEC Sunil Arora

"Maharashtra Assembly elections will be conducted through Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs); ballot paper is history," said Sunil Arora, the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Wednesday, assuring there is no mechanism to tamper with EVMs. Assuaging concerns about voting dates clashing with festivals, he said festivals, schools exams and other holidays will be considered when finalising days. Maharashtra Assembly elections are due in October-November this year.

The CEC said they held a series of review and preparation meetings with various stakeholders and government agencies to ensure the elections are error-free and efficient.

"We interacted with the police, excise department, the Railways, the Income Tax department, etc, as all government components need to work together for free and fair elections," he said, "We met political polities to understand their grievances."

He added that some political parties had demanded that expenditure limit for polls be increased. "Presently, for Lok Sabha polls, a candidate can spend up to Rs 70 lakh, while for the state Assembly, its Rs 28 lakh," he said, adding the EC saw no need to increase the limit.

He outlined the security measures saying CCTVs will be enlisted to monitor the counting and voting process. "We have also received complaints about bogus voters, and are looking into this," he said.