The official end of campaigning for the latest civil body elections in Jharkhand will take place at 5 pm on Saturday, and the compulsory silence period before the voting, which will be held on February 23, will start. The elections will take the form of elections in various urban local bodies within the state, such as municipal corporations, municipal councils and nagar panchayats.
The announcement marks the last phase of a stiff campaign period, where the political parties and the independent candidates ran rallies, door-to-door outreach programmes, road shows and public meetings as a way of reaching the voters. As the campaigns will soon come to a halt, the candidates will not be able to organize the gatherings of people, processions, or even campaign materials that would influence the voters.
According to the election rules, the silence period is applied 48 hours before the polls are closed so as to have a peaceful and fair election. The same period restrains campaigning among the people, the use of loudspeakers and political adverts in electronic media. The shift will allow the electorate to have ample time to consider their vote, devoid of candidates and party pressure in the last minute.
Voting will occur on 23rd February in the state booths. The elections play a very vital role in enriching the grassroots democracy because the urban local bodies have the mandate of providing the much-needed civic amenities like sanitation, water supply, road maintenance, waste management and street lighting. The elected officials will also be instrumental in development policy-making and alleviating local problems in their own wards and municipalities.
The election machinery in the state has been working harder to make the polls smooth and transparent. Security plans are being checked, voting officials are sent, and election equipments are being shipped to different districts. Those in power have also encouraged voters to check their names on the electoral lists and bring authentic IDs to the voting points.
The turnout of the voters is likely to be a major check-in since civic elections tend to be indicative of the attitude of the people in the local governance and development applications. The political observers feel that the result might affect the political strategies in the state in future.
Voting counting is supposed to be done a few days after the polling, after which the results will be announced. As the campaigning marathon comes to an end, everyone is currently focusing on February 23, when the citizens in Jharkhand will go out to exercise their democratic right and elect their local leaders.
