The District Election Officer of Karimganj has suspended the Presiding Officer at Nayadhar LP School following a voting scandal.
A video has surfaced online depicting a polling agent casting five votes on an EVM machine, a situation that should have been prevented by the responsible individual. Failure to enforce the ban on mobile phones in the polling station enabled the voting procedure to be recorded. This negligence is viewed as a significant dereliction of duty. The occurrence has sparked worries regarding the confidentiality and integrity of the voting process.
An official order was issued by Mridul Yadav, the Returning Officer cum District Election Officer of Karimganj, announcing the suspension. The statement read, “As per Hand Book for Presiding Officer, 2023 of Section 4.1-Sub Section(x), No cellphone, smart watch, cordless phone etc. is allowed inside the polling station. Also mention in Checklist of Presiding Officer, (precaution during poll) at Point No.8 that it is the duty of the Presiding Officer to ensure that no voter brings mobile phone inside the booth.”
“It is found that a video has been taken by the polling agent by mobile which is gross negligence and dereliction of duty on the part of Nazrul Haque Tapadar, Librarian as Presiding Officer who failed to stop/check carrying of mobile phone inside the polling station” the order then clarifies that due to this, Nazrul Haque Tapadar, Librarian has been placed under suspension from service with immediate effect under Rule 6(1)(A) of the Assam Service (discipline and appeal) Rules, 1964,” the order stated.
Nazrul Haque Tapadar, the Librarian, will remain stationed at Karlingang, the same location where he was originally assigned, during his suspension period.
In preparation for the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 7, the process of voting through postal ballots has commenced in the Kamrup Metropolitan district.
Sumit Sattavan, the District Commissioner and District Election Officer of Kamrup Metropolitan, has announced that the democratic right to vote has been initiated on April 27 for individuals with disabilities and senior citizens aged 85 years and above.
