Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh, March 19 -
Haryana Chief Electoral Officer Anurag Agarwal, has called upon all 1,98,29,675 voters of the state to exercise their franchise on May 25, 2024, the day of Lok Sabha general elections, and become a part of "Chunav Ka Parv, Desh Ka Garv" as it is essential for voters to participate in democracy. Agarwal said this while addressing a meeting of representatives of recognized national and state political parties convened at the Chief Electoral Officer's office.
He said that on March 16, 2024, with the announcement of the general elections of Lok Sabha for the year 2024 by the Election Commission, the Model Code of Conduct came into force. It is mandatory for the candidates contesting the elections and political parties to adhere to it. As soon as a candidate submits their nomination papers, the calculation of their election expenses will begin, and candidates will have to provide a separate account statement. The security deposit for candidates of the general category will be Rs 25,000, and for candidates of the Scheduled Caste, it will be Rs 12,500, he said.
Agarwal said that while filling out the nomination papers, candidates contesting elections will have to fill out Form 26 as an affidavit, which must be verified by a notary or a Class I Magistrate. For the use of vehicle for Star Companion, permission will have to be obtained from the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer. On the day of elections, in a vehicle, maximum 5 people will be allowed including the driver. Deputy Commissoners-cum District Electoral officers will designate locations for election rallies, said the Chief Electoral Officer.
He said that the Election Commission has prepared some mobile applications including Voter Helpline, cVigil, Voter Turnout, and Know Your Candidate. A total of 19,812 polling stations will be established in the state, where all basic facilities will be available.
On this occasion, representatives from political parties including Varinder Garg from the BJP, Talwinder Singh and R.D. Saini from the Congress, Veenus Malik from the Aam Aadmi Party Ram Narayan Yadav from the Jananayak Janata Party, and Satyavrat from the INLD attended the meeting. Besides this, Additional Chief Electoral Officer Hema Sharma, Joint Chief Electoral Officers Apurv and Sh. Rajkumar, and other officers remained present.