Mumbai: Action Against Police Constable for Sharing Photo of Postal Ballot on Social Media

Assembly elections in Maharashtra are scheduled for November 20, with postal voting already underway. A police constable faced action for breaching voting confidentiality by sharing a photo of his postal ballot paper on social media. Constable Ganesh Ashok Shinde, who voted via postal ballot for the 231 Ashti Assembly Constituency in Beed district, clicked a photo of his ballot paper and posted it online. The image quickly went viral.

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Election authorities took legal action against Shinde for disobeying election laws and breaching voting confidentiality. Balasaheb Vakchoure, the Election Returning Officer for the 185 Malabar Hill Assembly Constituency, confirmed the incident and emphasised the prohibition of such actions.

𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐢 𝐠𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐀𝐬𝐡𝐭𝐢 | Police constable had cast his postal ballot at Mumbai’s Wilson College with other policemen. Election office of… pic.twitter.com/m8yGMDA9q7

— MUMBAI NEWS (@Mumbaikhabar9) November 15, 2024

A Facilitation Centre for postal voting has been set up at Wilson College, Girgaon Chowpatty, Charni Road, Mumbai, for police personnel and employees. Officers cast their votes using postal ballots at this location. The incident occurred at polling station number 3 in the centre.

Strict guidelines were provided to voters, prohibiting the use of mobile phones within polling stations. Voters were instructed to maintain privacy while casting their votes and to properly seal their completed ballot papers in envelopes before dropping them in the designated ballot boxes.

Polling Centre president Prasanna Madhusudan Tambe reiterated the importance of maintaining voting confidentiality. A case has been registered against Constable Ganesh Ashok Shinde at Gamdevi Police Station, Mumbai, for violating these rules.