After Manipur, Odisha and Arunachal Pradesh, one polling booth in Kerala will see repolling. On Tuesday, when 20 Lok Sabha seats went to polls, the presiding officer at the booth number 83 of Kalamassery Assembly constituency in Ernakulam forgot to clear votes cast during the mock polling. This called for repolling in the state.
So, how different is repolling from the actual polling process? What does the law state about repolling? Will it affect the voter turnout?
Speaking to TNM, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Teeka Ram Meena explained that the conduct of fresh poll will be the same as the original poll. “The only difference will be that the indelible ink will be applied on the middle finger of the left hand, instead of reapplying on the forefinger,” he says.
What law says about repolling
According to section 58 of The Representation of the People Act, 1951, fresh poll will be conducted if a voting machine at any polling station develops a mechanical failure during the course of the recording of votes. If such an error or irregularity in the procedure to vitiate the poll is committed at a polling station, the returning officer should report the matter to the Election Commission.
“After taking all circumstances into account, the Election Commission will declare the poll at that polling station to be void and announce another day, time and a place to take a fresh poll at that polling station,” says Teeka Ram.
The voter turnout for repolling
Kerala registered a voter turnout of 77.68%, which is higher than the 73.94% turnout in 2014 Lok Sabha election. Voter turnout in Ernakulam constituency stood at 77.54%.
Kalamassery Assembly segment has 1.8 lakh voters. With 171 polling booths, Kalamassery recorded 80.13% of voter turnout.
“But voter turnout during repolling may decrease, or even go up. The voters who came on Tuesday may not turn up again,” says the Kerala CEO.
According to KM Sajad Ibrahim, Associate Professor and Head of Department, Political Science, University of Kerala, the voter turnout for repolling is generally less compared to the original polling day.
“Considering the weather condition in the state, the turnout for repolling this year, too, is likely to decrease. While there will be 10% to 15% decrease in the previous set of voters, the repolling may also see new voters. Besides, unlike Thiruvananthapuram, Wayanad and Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam does not have a strong election issue that would inspire people to come out and vote with enthusiasm,” Sajad tells TNM.
The Election Commission announced repolling in 12 booths of Manipur parliamentary constituency, where the polling was affected on April 18. Fresh polling was also ordered in nine booths of Odisha, which went to polls on April 18. Repolling was also held at 19 booths in Arunachal Pradesh on April 20: Six booths in Arunachal East and 13 in Arunachal West Lok Sabha seat.
In Kerala’s Kalamassery constituency, there was a difference of 43 votes in the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machine and the actual votes recorded at polling booth 83. Although 715 votes were recorded, the VVPAT machine showed 758 votes. It was then that officials realised that mock poll votes had not been removed.