<p>The EC announced a detailed election programme with elaborate arrangements to minimise the influence of money and muscle power.<br /><br />According to the programme, the elections will be held on October 21, 24 and 28 and November 1, 9 and 20. The results will be announced on November 24. <br /><br />The Banka Lok Sabha constituency, which has fallen vacant following the death of former Union minister Digvijay Singh, will have a bypoll on November 1. <br /><br />Addressing a press conference to announce the election details, Chief Election Commissioner S Y Qureshi disclosed that the commission’s new set of instructions to control the influence of money power in elections are ready for implementation in the Bihar Assembly elections.<br /><br />Asked about the menace of paid news, he said it should be a seen in the context of the overall control of money power. <br /><br />Qureshi also announced steps to curb the influence of muscle power and said vulnerability mapping would be done to identify sensitive booths. <br /><br />“In addition to the voting trend and the history of violence, many other factors like background of the candidates will also be considered to map sensitive booths. Accordingly, preventive measures will be taken,” he said. <br /><br />Adequate forces will be deployed to ensure a free and fair election. He said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s opinion to deploy paramilitary forces at every booth will also be considered in this regard. <br /><br />To ensure more transparency in the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs), the commission has decided to have more participation from political parties in its use.<br />Qureshi announced that a first-level checking of EVMs will be done in the presence of representatives of political parties soon.<br /></p>
<p>The EC announced a detailed election programme with elaborate arrangements to minimise the influence of money and muscle power.<br /><br />According to the programme, the elections will be held on October 21, 24 and 28 and November 1, 9 and 20. The results will be announced on November 24. <br /><br />The Banka Lok Sabha constituency, which has fallen vacant following the death of former Union minister Digvijay Singh, will have a bypoll on November 1. <br /><br />Addressing a press conference to announce the election details, Chief Election Commissioner S Y Qureshi disclosed that the commission’s new set of instructions to control the influence of money power in elections are ready for implementation in the Bihar Assembly elections.<br /><br />Asked about the menace of paid news, he said it should be a seen in the context of the overall control of money power. <br /><br />Qureshi also announced steps to curb the influence of muscle power and said vulnerability mapping would be done to identify sensitive booths. <br /><br />“In addition to the voting trend and the history of violence, many other factors like background of the candidates will also be considered to map sensitive booths. Accordingly, preventive measures will be taken,” he said. <br /><br />Adequate forces will be deployed to ensure a free and fair election. He said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s opinion to deploy paramilitary forces at every booth will also be considered in this regard. <br /><br />To ensure more transparency in the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs), the commission has decided to have more participation from political parties in its use.<br />Qureshi announced that a first-level checking of EVMs will be done in the presence of representatives of political parties soon.<br /></p>
