In a span of just 20 days, since the announcement of elections and the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) becoming operational, the Suvidha platform received an impressive 73,379 permission requests from political parties and candidates, of which 44,626 requests (60 per cent) had been approved.
Maximum requests were received from Tamil Nadu (23,239), followed by West Bengal (11,976) and Madhya Pradesh (10,636). The least number of requests so far have been received from Chandigarh (17), Lakshadweep (18) and Manipur (20)..
According to the Election Commission, the applications submitted by by parties and candidates include requests for booking rally grounds, opening temporary party offices and operating video publicity vans. The seven phase elections were announced on March 16 and voting would commence from April 19. The last phase is on June 1.
Nearly 11,200 requests had been rejected which is 15% of the total requests received and 10,819 applications cancelled as were invalid or duplicate. Rest of the applications are under process as per the details available till April 7, 2024.
The portal has received requests from Tripura ( 2844), Assam ( 2609), Bihar ( 861), Goa ( 28), Gujarat ( 648), Haryana ( 207), Himachal Pradesh ( 125), Karnataka (2689), Kerala ( 1411), Maharashtra ( 2131), Meghalaya ( 1046), Odisha ( 92), Rajasthan ( 2052), Punjab ( 696), Uttar Pradesh ( 3273), Chhattisgarh ( 472), Jharkhand ( 270), Uttarakhand ( 1903) and Telangana ( 836).
The Suvidha portal is a technological solution developed by ECI to ensure a level playing-field upholding the democratic principles of free, fair and transparent elections. Demonstrating an impressive track record, the Suvidha Portal streamlined the process of obtaining and acting upon requests for permissions and facilities from political parties and candidates during the election period.
“Recognizing the importance of the election campaign period, where parties and candidates engage in activities to reach out to voters, the Suvidha Portal caters to a diverse range of permission requests transparently on the First in First Out principle. It caters to permissions for organising rallies, opening temporary party offices, door-to-door canvassing, video vans, helicopters, obtaining vehicle permits, distributing pamphlets,” the Election Commission said.
According to the Election Commission (EC), the Suvidha Platform not only enhances the efficiency of the election process but also ensures transparency by providing real-time tracking of applications, status updates, times tamped submissions, and communication via SMS. Furthermore, the permission data available on the portal serves as a valuable resource for scrutinising election expenditures, contributing to greater accountability and integrity in the electoral process.
