Chennai: For the first time in the country, the inmates at the Institute of Mental Health, Chennai will receive voters IDs and will be taken to vote following an instruction by the Election Commissioner.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, P. Poorna Chandrika, Director, IMH, said that they had initially planned to get Adhaar cards for the inmates but with the help of Disability Rights Alliance (DRA) who had suggested the idea, the initiative was launched on Tuesday.”We had to ensure that our inmates had the decision-making capacity, will they know whom to vote for? Will they know how to use the EVM? We had to test these before ensuring that they could get IDs,” Dr Poorna said.
Inmates who have been acquired or are under trial are also included.”We are now able to ensure that equality isn’t just on paper and that the constitutional right to vote is available to all,” Dr Poorna said.
A total of 129 inmates, including 6 who are under trial or acquited have applied for the IDs. R Lalitha, Additional District Election Officer took part in the initiative. She also took stock of the difficulties which may be involved in taking the inmates to vote and will try to set up a polling booth nearby, Dr Poorna said.
Meanwhile, the first meeting of the State Steering Committee on Accessible Elections (SSCAE) chaired by the Chief Electoral Officer was held on Tuesday. The Election Commission had decided to set up the SSCAE to assist all persons with disabilities in the electoral process.
The meeting’s discussion focused on creating an enabling barrier-free environment to support the electoral participation of persons with disabilities in the state and identify those who aren’t enrolled and facilitate their enrollment, a release from the public elections department said.
“We intend to have adequate disabled friendly Assured Minimum Facilities in all polling stations and motor chair mobilisation, along with ensuring sufficed training for polling personnel to sensitize them on special needs of PwDs,” the release said.
