Kochi | Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Friday called upon all political parties to ensure that the conduct of the upcoming Assembly elections in Kerala remains a model not only for the country but also for the world.
Kumar, along with Election Commissioners Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr Vivek Joshi, and Chief Electoral Officer Rathan U Kelkar, held a meeting with representatives of national and state political parties here.
The chief election commissioner is on a three-day visit to Kerala to review preparations for the upcoming Assembly elections.
According to EC officials, most political parties appreciated the Election Commission of India (EC) for the peaceful and smooth conduct of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Kerala.
Some parties also appreciated the work done by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) during the SIR process.
Kumar reiterated that the SIR had been conducted in a transparent manner and said Forms 6, 7 and 8 could still be filed for inclusions, deletions or corrections in the electoral rolls.
Appeals could also be filed with the District Magistrate or the Chief Electoral Officer as per the Representation of the People Act, 1950, he said.
During the meeting, political parties urged the poll panel to take stringent measures to curb the use of money power and the distribution of liquor and freebies during elections, officials said.
Some parties also requested the EC to keep local festivals in mind while finalising the poll schedule.
Some of the parties raised concerns over the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and synthetically generated content in vitiating the electoral atmosphere.
Kumar assured the parties that elections are conducted strictly as per the law in an impartial, free, fair and transparent manner.
He encouraged political parties to use the cVIGIL component of the ECINET platform of the ECI to file complaints regarding violations of the model code of conduct during elections.
Election Commission officials also assured that minimum facilities at polling booths, including ramps, wheelchairs and drinking water, would be ensured for the comfort of voters.
The national parties that attended the meeting were the Aam Aadmi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Bharatiya Janata Party, CPI (M) and the Indian National Congress.
The state parties present included the CPI, Indian Union Muslim League, Kerala Congress, Kerala Congress (M) and the Revolutionary Socialist Party.
Later, the Commission held a detailed review with the Heads/Nodal Officers of Enforcement Agencies, IGs, DIGs, DEOs, SPs on every aspect of election planning, EVM management, logistics, training of election staff, seizures, law and order, voter awareness and outreach activities, a government press release said.
The Commission directed all Heads/Nodal Officers of Enforcement Agencies to act with complete impartiality and firmly clamp down on all inducement-related activities, the statement said.
Early in the day, Kumar interacted with young voters at a function held at Goshree Bridge here.
Kumar walked along the bridge with students and shared memories from his time as the Ernakulam district collector.
Recalling the construction of the Goshree Bridge, he spoke about the various stages and challenges involved in the project, which ended the decades-long travel difficulties faced by residents of Vypin Island.
Expressing confidence about the conduct of the elections, he said that the political awareness of the people and the efficiency of the administrative machinery would together ensure one of the most transparent and people-friendly elections in the country.
During the programme, voter identity cards were distributed to first-time voters, and they were administered an oath encouraging participation in the democratic process.
Around 300 students from various colleges participated in the event.
A presentation of the theme song to attract young voters to the election process was also released during the event.
