Election Commission said that Covid-19 patients will be allowed to vote through postal ballots in the Bihar Assembly elections.

In a strong indication that the Election Commission is reconciling to the possibility of conducting the Bihar Assembly elections amid the coronavirus pandemic, the poll body has said that it will go the extra mile to make arrangements to ensure that the democratic exercise isn’t affected. According to a report in The Indian Express, Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra said that the ECI will take all measures to ensure that the voter turnout in the upcoming elections later this year isn’t affected.

Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra told The Indian Express that no person shall be deprived of the right to vote. He said that the Covid-19 patients will be allowed to vote through postal ballots in the elections.

For this, he said that the Law Ministry has accepted the EC’s proposal and a new category of ‘Covid-19 suspect or affected persons’ has been added under Rule 27A of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961.

“There will be an SOP for the Covid-positive voter to notify the Returning Officer…Once the application is accepted, the voter will not be allowed to vote at his or her polling booth. This facility will be extended to all future elections, including bye-elections,” Chandra told IE, adding that the commission may even send a polling officer to deliver postal ballots to Covid-positive voters and bring it back to ensure that the turnout does not take a hit due to the pandemic.

Voters who have tested positive in a government healthcare facility or one designated by the government as a Covid hospital will fall under the new category. Besides, voters under home quarantine or institutional quarantine will also be allowed to avail the postal ballot option.

Chandra’s statement on the EC making arrangements to ensure voting at the time of pandemic is a strong indicator that the Bihar Assembly elections may not be delayed due to the COVID-19 situation. Elections in Bihar are scheduled to be held in October-November this year.

He also said that the poll body is also mulling options like advance voting for those residing in the containment zones but are not infected. He said that the panel has sought inputs from the state Chief Electoral Officer and is considering a few options.

To ensure social distancing norms are implemented at the polling booths, he said the number of polling stations will be increased and the number of voters will be capped at each polling booth to 1,000, instead of 1,600 under normal circumstances. “So we will have to add another 30,000 polling stations,” he said.

To a question on campaigning by political parties, Chandra said that the political parties too will have to follow the health and NDMA guidelines. Parties will have to rely on virtual rallies and campaigning through social media, he said, adding that the situation could change closer to the date of the poll in Bihar.

Bihar will be the first state in the country that will go to polls since the coronavirus outbreak. As per the schedule, Bihar will vote to elect a new government in October-November. The term of the Bihar Assembly ends on November 29.