Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar addresses booth level agents from Bihar on April 16, 2025. Photo: X/@ECISVEEP
In a first, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has begun training booth-level agents (BLAs) belonging to political parties from Bihar in view of the forthcoming Assembly election in the State.
Around 280 BLAs from the State associated with 10 recognised political parties are taking part in the two-day training, which began at the India International Institute for Democracy and Election Management in the national capital on Wednesday (April 16, 2025).
The Assembly election is scheduled to be held in Bihar in October-November.
The ECI initiative comes amid widespread allegations by Opposition parties about manipulation in voter lists.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, along with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, addressed the BLAs at the first-of-its-kind training programme, an official statement by the ECI said.
Key role
The training was conceptualised during the Chief Electoral Officers’ (CEO) conference held on March 4 wherein the commission underscored the importance of BLAs in the election processes. It said the training programme would help them fulfil their responsibilities as delineated in the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and 1951; the Registration of Elector Rules, 1960; the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961; and the manuals, guidelines and instructions issued by the EC from time to time.
On the first day of the training on Wednesday, the BLAs were given an overview of their roles and responsibilities as per the legal framework. The programme familiarised them with various aspects of the election processes, including the preparation and revision of electoral rolls as well as the associated application forms.
The BLAs are appointed by recognised political parties and play an important role in ensuring error-free electoral rolls as per the provisions of the RP Act, 1950. The BLAs were trained in the use of the provision of first and second appeals under sections 24(a) and 24(b) of the RP Act 1950 in case they are aggrieved at the final electoral rolls as published.
Published – April 16, 2025 08:15 pm IST