Sudhir Kumar / New Delhi
Election Commission today appointed Special Observers in six states to provide critical feedback and vigilant oversight for a level playing field during the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly polls.
The states are West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Bihar where the population is more than seven crores along with Andhra Pradesh and Odisha where the simultaneous elections to the assemblies are to be held.
The Special Observers have been entrusted with the crucial task of supervising the randomization of personnel, security forces, and voting machines, thereby preventing any attempts to subvert the democratic process and ensuring a level playing field. They will station themselves at the State headquarters and if needed to the areas where sensitivity is high or necessary coordination is required. They will also seek inputs and coordinate with Regional Heads and Nodal Officers of various agencies involved in monitoring activities.
The Special Observers will have a special focus in border areas and work on border sensitivities in plugging the inflow of inducements. The Commission has also deployed Special Expenditure Observers in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha to clamp down on money power in elections and strengthen the existing election expenditure monitoring. The Special Observers appointed are former civil servants with a brilliant track record of domain expertise and past experience with election processes.