3.30 Lakh Elderly, PwDs Used Home Voting Facility In Last 11 Assembly Polls

As many as 3.30 lakh people with disability and electors who are 80 years and above have availed the home voting facility in the last 11 assembly elections, sources said on Saturday, citing data.

Persons with disability (PwD), voters above 80 years of age and those suffering from Covid can avail the home voting facility.

Representatives of political parties and polling personnel visit the residence of electors who opt for home voting at a predesignated time.

The home voting option is exercised using ballot paper under prescribed secrecy norms and the process is video-graphed.

Over 2.6 lakh senior citizens who are 80 years and above and over 70,000 PwDs have availed the home voting facility in last 11 state assembly elections, the sources said.

While the latest set of assembly polls were held in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Rajasthan, and Telangana, elections were earlier held in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura and Karnataka.

Home voting, the sources recalled, is one of the several interventions by the Election Commission towards making elections inclusive and accessible. The commission had been expressing gratitude towards senior citizen voters, particularly centenarians, for exercising their franchise.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar had personally written letters to over 2.5 lakh centenarian voters to express the commission's gratitude for their key role in strengthening democracy.