Jammu, Aug 28: The Election Commission of India (ECI) today announced detailed guidelines for the allotment of broadcast and telecast time to political parties in the upcoming General Elections to the Legislative Assemblies of Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir. This initiative is designed to ensure equitable media coverage and enhance transparency in the electoral process.
The ECI’s directive, effective for the forthcoming elections, introduces an equitable time-sharing scheme through state-owned media. This scheme, initially introduced during the 1998 Lok Sabha elections and extended to subsequent elections, is now being applied to the Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir Assembly polls.
Under the new guidelines, each National Party and recognized State Party in both Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir will be allocated a base time of 45 minutes for broadcast and telecast. Additional time will be awarded based on the party’s performance in previous elections. Importantly, no party will receive more than 15 minutes in a single broadcast session.
The broadcast and telecast period will commence from the date of publication of the list of contesting candidates and will continue until two days before the election. The Prasar Bharati Corporation, in consultation with the ECI, will determine the exact dates and times for these broadcasts, subject to technical constraints.
Political parties must submit their transcripts and recordings in advance, adhering to the technical standards set by Prasar Bharati. The ECI will also organize up to two panel discussions or debates, where each eligible party can nominate one representative.
“The aim is to create a balanced and fair platform for all parties,” the press communique added . “We are ensuring that the content adheres to the guidelines, avoiding criticism of other countries, incitement to violence, and defamation.”
The new guidelines also introduce digital time vouchers, allowing parties to combine time allotments flexibly. Each voucher is available in denominations of 5 minutes, with a total of 900 minutes of broadcast time allocated for the Jammu & Kashmir Assembly elections .
The ECI has laid out specific guidelines for media conduct which includes no content should criticize other countries, attack religions or communities, or include anything obscene or defamatory and incitement to violence, contempt of court, aspersion against the integrity of the President and Judiciary, or any criticism by name of any person is strictly prohibited.
The initiative will be implemented through the Regional Kendras of All India Radio and Doordarshan, and will be relayed by other stations within Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir.
