New Delhi: A claim circulating on social media suggests that government officials on election duty won’t be able to vote using postal ballots. This message is primarily shared on closed messaging platforms like WhatsApp.
Vishvas News investigated the post and found it to be fake. The Election Commission of India has refuted this claim, stating that the officers on election duty can cast their vote through postal ballot at the designated Voter Facilitation Centre.
What’s in the viral post
A user shared a screenshot of a WhatsApp conversation on Vishvas News’ chatbot number +91 95992 99372, in which the message stated, “Now no government employee will be able to cast his vote through postal ballot.”
Investigation
To verify this post, we used Google Lens to extract the text from the viral post and searched using Google Open Search. This led us to an official Facebook post of the Election Commission refuting the claim. Additionally, the debunked post was also found on the Election Commission’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle and shared by DD News Live on Facebook. We reached out to Anuj Chandak, Joint Director of the Election Commission of India, who confirmed that the viral post was false.
False Claim: A message is being circulated on Whats App that Govt employees cannot cast their vote through postal ballot.
Reality: Message is misleading & fake. Eligible Officials on election duty can cast their vote through postal ballot at designated Voter Facilitation Centre pic.twitter.com/Lxa4BozpLH
— Election Commission of India (@ECISVEEP) April 4, 2024
What is postal ballot
A postal ballot allows individuals who are unable to vote in person at their constituency due to job commitments to cast their vote via mail. The 2024 Lok Sabha elections are scheduled in seven phases, commencing on 19 April 2024. The results will be announced on 4 June 2024.
Conclusion
Vishvas News’ investigation revealed that the viral claim is false. The Election Commission clarified that officials on election duty retain the option to cast their vote through postal ballots at designated Voter Facilitation Centers.
This story was originally published by Vishvas News, as part of the Shakti Collective. Except for the headline, excerpt and introduction para, this story has not been edited by ThePrint staff.