Punjab: Amritpal to cast vote in VP election from Dibrugarh jail
The chief electoral officer said on Monday that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued directions to the Union ministry of home affairs and the chief secretary of Assam to facilitate voting by the jailed MP.
Amritpal Singh, the Khadoor Sahib MP currently lodged in a central jail in Assam under preventive detention, will be allowed to cast his vote in the 2025 vice-presidential election.
The chief electoral officer said on Monday that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued directions to the Union ministry of home affairs and the chief secretary of Assam to facilitate voting by the jailed MP.
Amritpal, a radical Sikh leader, is presently under preventive detention under the National Security Act, 1980, at Dibrugarh Central Jail. “In accordance with the provisions of Rule 26 of the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Rules, 1974, the commission has directed that a postal ballot paper be issued to him,” an official release stated.
As per procedure, postal ballot papers for electors under preventive detention are to be delivered only on the day of poll, and the sealed cover containing the marked postal ballot must reach the returning officer before the commencement of counting. The ECI has instructed the MHA and the Assam chief secretary to ensure that the sealed cover containing the postal ballot marked by Amritpal Singh is carried by a special messenger from Dibrugarh by air, so that it reaches the returning officer well before 6 pm on September 9, the scheduled date for counting of votes. Authorities have been directed to immediately put in place arrangements for this purpose and share full details with the commission.
