On Monday, the Election commission said that in the first phase of Bihar elections to be held on October 28, more than 52,000 voters, who are either senior citizens (above 80 years of age) or are people with disabilities, have opted for the postal ballot.

The EC said in a statement that in the 71 constituencies, Booth Level Officers (BLO) spread across 16 districts of the state had approached over four lakh voters of the two categories. The number of electors who have opted to vote through the postal ballots in phase one of polls is more than fifty-two thousand.

The remaining electors have preferred to visit the polling booth stations to cast their votes. Postal ballots would be provided to those electors who have opted for the facility, on a pre-informed date by the concerned returning officers with proper security and videography arrangements to ensure secrecy, safety, and transparency in the process.

According to the poll panel, in Bihar elections, in subsequent two phases and for the by-election in other states, the exercise will continue so that the electoral process becomes more accessible, inclusive and safe for these categories of voters in the larger backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bypolls are scheduled to be held on November 3 and November 7. In the next two phases of the Bihar elections, BLOs will visit homes of approximately 12 lakh such electors to help them exercise the postal ballot option.

The postal ballot facility is quite different from the one extended to service voters, explained an official. The official also said that the voters who are willing to use the facility have to fill up a form. Officials then carry the ballot to the residence of such voters and videograph the voting to ensure transparency.

While the Election Commission is gathering relevant data and ensuring a transparent Postal ballot, Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, begins his poll campaign from Rosera in Samastipur district on Tuesday afternoon. He is the chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming three-phase Bihar elections from the RJD led mahagathbandhan and Leader of the Opposition in the state legislative assembly.

Tejashwi’s elder brother, Tej Pratap Yadav will start the campaign by filling of nomination papers. A campaign theme song also has been launched by RJD, driving home the message that the party chief Lalu Prasad’s scion is certain to get the top job in Bihar.

For the state police and CRPF, the first phase of the state elections in 71 assembly constituencies of Bihar on October 28 will be a litmus test as all the seats fall under extremist affected districts of Nawada, Aurangabad, Lakhisarai, Gaya, Munger, Jamui, Banka, Rohtas, and Jehanabad. In the years 2009, 2010, and 2014 the districts have seen major Maoist attacks on government officials, buildings and infrastructure killing a political leader and many policemen. In this region, the main threat to the election comes from the use of landmines which are hard to detect. Nawada, Aurangabad, Lakhisarai, and Jamui are the most vulnerable districts (with regards to the issue of Maoists) for the upcoming poll process.

The ECI, hence, apart from dealing with the concern of the postal ballots is also caught up with the issue of security in the upcoming Bihar Polls.