District Electoral Office cum-Bokaro Deputy Commissioner Mukesh Kumar directed all outsiders (who rushed here for a political campaign) to leave the constituencies immediately and said they could only return after the polling is over.

On the directive of Election Commission all political leaders, functionaries or party workers, who are not the registered voters, have to vacate the constituency till the polls are over, said Kumar adding “it’s prohibition protocol and necessary guidelines have been issued to the police.”

The campaign period for Gomia and Bermo Assembly constituencies have ended on Tuesday and none of the political party workers or campaigners who are not registered in the said constituencies is allowed to stay in that constituency till the poll over, he said.

Raids are continues in hotels, lodges and rest houses in Bermo and Gomia constituencies to arrest such people. Therefore, to avoid any legal action, all outsiders should leave the constituency without any delay, said Kumar.

Kumar said, it is estimated there are about lakhs of voters are deprived of voting due to not sanctioning of ‘paid leave’ by their respective organisations. According to Section 135B, every person employed in any business, trade, industrial undertaking or any other establishment and entitled to vote at an election to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly of a State shall, on the day of poll, be granted a holiday.

No deduction or abatement of the wages of any such person shall be made on account of a holiday having been granted for the poll and if such the person is employed on the basis that he would not ordinarily receive wages for such a day, he shall nonetheless be paid for such day the wages he would have drawn had not a holiday been granted to him on that day, informed an official.

“If an employer contravenes the provisions then such an employer shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees though this section shall not apply to any elector whose absence may cause danger or substantial loss in respect of the employment in which he is engaged,” he said.

Bermo and Gomia the two constituencies of Bokaro district are going for the poll on 12 December while in the other two constituencies Bokaro and Chandankiyari will see the poll battle in fourth phase on December 16, he said.