New Delhi : The Election Commission of India has updated its guidelines to alter the layout of EVM ballot papers, starting with the upcoming Bihar assembly elections. Provisioned under Rule 49B of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, candidates’ photographs will now be printed in colour, replacing the earlier black-and-white or no-photo versions, to facilitate clearer identification.
Additionally, the candidate’s serial number on the ballot paper will be made more prominent for better visibility. Under the revised rules, both design and print have been altered to make ballots more voter-friendly and reduce confusion at polling booths. This initiative builds on 28 initiatives already undertaken by the Election Commission over the past six months to streamline and improve election processes and enhance voter convenience.
From now on, candidates’ photographs will be printed in colour on EVM ballot papers. For better visibility, the candidate’s face will occupy three-quarters of the photo space. The serial number of the candidate or Nota will be printed in the international form of Indian numerals. The font size will be 30 and in bold for clarity.
To ensure uniformity, the names of all candidates or Nota will be printed in the same font type and adequate font size for easy readability. EVM ballot papers will be printed on 70 GSM paper. For assembly elections, pink paper with specified RGB values will be used.
The Election Commission’s decision to introduce the renewed EVM ballot papers beginning with the Bihar Assembly elections comes on the heels of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the state’s electoral rolls, which has become a major flashpoint between the Centre and poll body on one side and the opposition on the other.
On August 18, the Election Commission published a draft list showing that 65 lakh names had been deleted as part of the SIR exercise. The electoral roll revision has been challenged by several opposition parties in the Supreme Court, alleging that lakhs of genuine voters are being struck off the rolls without proper verification.
On Tuesday, the top court said it would cancel the entire Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar if any illegality was found in the methodology adopted by the Election Commission of India (ECI). During the hearing of the matter, the Supreme Court had, on September 8, directed that Aadhaar, which was not included in the list of 11 valid documents, be treated as the twelfth valid document for inclusion in Bihar’s electoral rolls.