PERAMBALUR: The election commission has come under flak after social media has posts galore purportedly showing voters from the state illegally filming themselves while exercising their franchise at polling booths during the general election on Friday.
According to ECI guidelines, voters aren’t allowed to carry mobile phones within a 100-metre radius of a polling booth. Any violation would invite action under Section 128 (2) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Social media platforms, however, now have posts doing the rounds purportedly showing voters revealing whom they cast their vote for on Friday. One such Facebook post shared on Saturday shows a man recording himself while casting vote by pressing the EVM at a polling station purportedly under Erode constituency.
Another post shared on the same medium on Saturday shows a person pointing to the DMK’s ‘rising sun’ symbol on the EVM. The person then makes an offensive gesture with the hand and presses the button against the PMK’s poll symbol. Another account posted a similar video the same day showing one casting vote purportedly for an AMMK candidate. On such posts, V Muthu Kumaran, an advocate, said, “The use of electronic gadgets, including mobile phones and wristwatches, is prohibited inside polling booths. It is an offence to photograph or record any voting process. Voting is confidential. Taking videos of such confidential acts and posting it on social media would lead to many practical problems. This should be prevented in the upcoming elections. Such videos posted on social media should also be deleted.”
The election commission has not properly enforced rules this election. K Selvakumar, a voter from Tiruchy, said, “I carried my mobile phone along while entering the polling booth. Nobody stopped me. Many voters after exercising their franchise also took selfies.” When contacted, an official from the Tamil Nadu Election Commission told TNIE, “Such acts are violations of the model code of conduct (MCC). We will take action if we were to receive any such complaint.”