Different Rules for Postal Ballots: Secrecy for Expatriates, Open Voting for Government Employees

Staff Correspondent

The lack of serial numbers on postal ballots for expatriate voters and the presence of specific serial numbers on postal ballots for government officials and employees in the 13th National Parliament election have sparked fresh debates over electoral transparency and security. Political analysts and election observers have called the two different systems “questionable.”

As per the Election Commission’s guidelines, postal ballots sent to expatriate voters do not contain any serial number or tracing identifier. As a result, there is no specific way to later challenge or track which candidate an expatriate voter voted for.

Analysts say the system could create easy opportunities for voter fraud. Since no voter’s identity is linked to a ballot, it would be nearly impossible to prove ballot swapping, extra ballots, or even tampering with the results.

On the other hand, the ballots of government officials and employees (who have been given the facility of postal voting) have specific serial numbers. As a result, after the vote is counted or in any disputed situation, it can be easily found out which official or employee voted for which candidate.

Many have expressed concerns that this system could pose a risk to the safety and professional lives of government employees in the post-election situation. Especially if a party comes to power and the results of the postal vote go against their expectations, the possibility of pressure or retaliatory measures against those officials and employees cannot be ruled out.

Political analyst Dr. Ahmed Kamal said, “This dual policy of not putting numbers on the ballots of expatriate voters and putting numbers on the ballots of government employees raises deep questions about the transparency and impartiality of the electoral process.

“The benefits of rigging on the one hand, and the insecurity of government employees on the other—both are contrary to democratic values.”

An Election Commission official (who did not wish to be named) said that the decision was made not to keep numbers for expatriate ballots to maintain confidentiality. However, in the case of government employees, the numbers were kept for administrative control and accountability reasons without keeping any confidentiality.

This explanation does not seem to be quite acceptable to many. Meanwhile, election monitoring organizations are preparing to file a formal complaint on this issue. They claim that the overall credibility of the election will be undermined if the same rules are not applied to postal votes. It is worth noting that in this election, the number of postal votes of expatriate voters is significant and the postal votes of government employees are also an important part. There is growing public concern about how the votes of these two groups will be counted and stored.