Ensuring Accessible Voting: Satheesan Calls for Changes

V D Satheesan, the Leader of the Opposition in Kerala's state Assembly, has urged the Election Commission to address obstacles that could hinder government employees from participating in the upcoming assembly polls. In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Satheesan highlighted the challenges faced by postal voters.

Satheesan pointed out that under the current system, voters must visit facilitation centres between April 1 and 8 to obtain and cast their postal ballots. This process, he claims, is leading to difficulties, as many centres reportedly lack adequate ballots, threatening to disenfranchise numerous government employees.

Further, essential workers in the health sector, including doctors and nurses, face voting barriers due to election-day duties. Satheesan calls for extending facilitation centre hours and ensuring these health staff can vote effortlessly, maintaining the integrity of the electoral process.