India Is Protecting Maldivian Election Ballot Boxes: This Is Why
The Maldives’ parliamentary elections, which were postponed from March 17 to April 21, 2024, will take place during a holy month—Ramadan. Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, will have voting booths for the forthcoming parliamentary election, the Maldivian electoral commission declared on Saturday.
Furthermore, voting booths will be positioned in the main cities of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Colombo, Sri Lanka. As to the article by First Post, Hassan Zakariyya, the secretary general of the Maldivian poll board, said that the deployment of ballot boxes in three foreign nations is justified due to the substantial re-registration of voters during the re-registration session.
Maldives Election Ballot Boxes: No Polling in the Maldives Elections in the UK, UAE, or Thailand
On Sunday, the Maldives Election Commission said that almost 11,000 voters had asked to be re-registered in order to change their voting places. As per media reports, the six-day period for voters to change their polling places for the parliamentary elections ended on Saturday, as per an announcement from the Elections Commission.
According to media reports, the electoral body announced that ballot boxes would be placed in addition to polling stations within the island nation in Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram), the capital of Kerala, as well as in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. These announcements came after at least 150 individuals in each of these three countries re-registered.
According to the website adadhu.com, the secretary-general of the Elections Commission, Hassan Zakariyya, said that “enough people registered in Sri Lanka and Malaysia as previously.” Additionally, we have chosen to install a voting box in Thiruvananthapuram, India, since 150 individuals have registered there.”
The highest electoral authority received 11,169 application forms for re-registration at different polling places within the allotted time. The edition.mv news site said that 1,141 of these applications were returned, making 10,028 re-registrations in total.
Zakariyya pointed out that fewer individuals re-registered this year than in previous elections. He said that Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom will not have voting.
Election in the Maldives Moved to April
The island nation’s legislative elections, which were initially set for Sunday, March 17, were postponed after an Act modification that forbade holding polls during the month of Ramadan. The polling date has been delayed until April 21.
According to the sun.mv news site, 389 individuals are running for 93 parliamentary seats in the Maldives.
The major opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which supports India, is fielding the most candidates with 90 seats. The main governing coalition, consisting of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and the People’s National Congress (PNC), is in second place with 89 seats.
The PNC’s Mohamed Muizzu, the pro-China president of the Maldives, was elected last year on an anti-India platform.
