After sustained criticism over marker pens used to mark voters in the Maharashtra local body elections, the State Election Commission (SEC) has mandated the use of indelible ink in the upcoming zilla parishad and panchayat samiti polls, state election commissioner Dinesh Waghmare said.
“The commission has mandated the use of markers with indelible ink cartridges since 2011. Markers were used because it was felt that they would be easier to use. The ink is kept in glass bottles and must be applied with a stick. This can cause the ink to spill or the bottles to break. Therefore, markers had to be used. The ink used in the pen, of course, was indelible,” he told The indian express.
However, on January 15, when the state’s 29 municipal corporations voted after a gap of nine years, there was sustained criticism over the use of the pen, with many saying that the ink mark could be easily removed. Opposition parties questioned the markers and claimed that the ink mark could be easily removed.. On the day of the vote, the ruling alliance and the SEC issued statements denying the claim, with Waghmare urging voters not to fall prey to the rumours. He added that any attempt to alter the ink mark was a cognizable and criminal offence.
Waghmare said that in view of the uncertainty created by the use of markersthe SEC had decided to go back to the ink bottles. “We have already placed orders for 1.5 lakh 5 cc bottles and 75,000 10 cc indelible ink bottles with Mysore paints. These will be used in the upcoming zilla parishad and panchayat samiti elections. These rural local bodies will go to polls in February.
However, AAP leader Vijay Kumbhar said the decision came too late. “The way the government had reacted to the criticism itself was strange. The chief minister tried to prove that the ink could not be removed, but voters across the state said the ink rubbed off in seconds. A thorough investigation must be carried out to understand the process,” he said.
Kumbhar also said the investigation should look into why the pens were allowed in the first place and whether they were misused.
The BJP won most of the local bodies in the elections.