The Election Commission of India (ECI) Monday advised the Kashmir migrant voters to cast their votes in transitory camps, set up at Jammu, Udhampur and New Delhi, besides asking them to submit ‘Form M’ and ‘Form 12C’ before 10 days of polling to the concerned electoral registration officer (ERO) and assistant returning officer (ARO), respectively.
The ECI wrote to the chief electoral officer, Jammu andKashmir, wherein it tweaked its special scheme for Kashmiri migrant voters, ina bid to enable them to submit ‘Form M’ to their local electoral registrationofficer, who has been directed to electronically send it to the designatedassistant returning officer.
As per the scheme mentioned in the written communication,”Form M is meant exclusively for Kashmiri migrants keen on voting in person at26 special polling stations set up by the ECI across three transitory camps.The 26 polling stations cover 44 Assembly seats from where Kashmiris migrated.”
Pertinently, earlier,those choosing to vote at a transitory camp had to travel to either Delhi orJammu or Udhampur to apply for this facility or dispatch ‘Form M’ by mail. Theproposed change, EC expects, will cut down the processing time and make theapplication process easier.
In addition, as per the communication, Kashmiri migrants arealso entitled to cast their vote by postal ballot for which they have submit’form 12C’ to the designated ARO in Jammu by post. “The Commission, as part ofits proposal to Law ministry, has also sought to allow such voters to submit’Form 12C’ to the local ERO where they are living, who will then, afterverification, dispatch the form electronically to the ARO in Jammu,” thecommunication read, adding that besides appearing in person to vote, the postalballot, which was dispatched and received by normal mail until now, will bepermitted to be sent by speed post.
It may be recalled thatthe Commission’s special scheme for Kashmiri migrant voters was put in place in1996 Assembly elections in the state and has been going on ever since. Thescheme was devised for migrants who had left their homes in the Kashmir Valleyafter April 1, 1989, but wanted their names to be continued in the electoralrolls of their native places.