The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Collectors told to keep strict vigil on counting days

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, May 09, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Collectors told to keep strict vigil on counting days

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, MAY 8. The Chief Electoral Officer, M. Narayana Rao, has asked the district Collectors and SPs to be alert and take all steps to avert incidents and violence on (votes) counting days.

Mr Rao said there were possibilities of scuffles and law & order problems on the days as the voters' identity would be known under the present system of "booth-wise" counting with the use of electronic voting machines.

In contrast, the counting used to be round-wise under the earlier system of paper ballot. The old system provided for mixing paper votes of several places in a drum before the counting, avoiding the voters' identity. "But, this will not be so now," he said, asking the district heads and the law & order machinery at state level to be on watch, especially when the initial trends came out.

He said on Saturday that he had issued do's and dont's for avoiding incidents -- one of them was a total ban on use of cell phones by all those present in the counting hall with the exemption given only to election officials/personnel.

The ban would specially apply to candidates and his two men present at the counting hall, the election agent and counting agent. Orders were also issued prohibiting use of cell phones, carrying of weapons and smoking within 200-metre radius of the counting hall.

Meanwhile, on the instructions of the Election Commission, the Excise Department has ordered closure of all liquor /toddy shops in the State on May 11 and 13, the dates set for voter-counting for the Assembly and Lok Sabha seats respectively.

It will be from 6 am on both days lasting up to 6 am the next day.

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