Srinagar: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the continuation of state-funded media access for recognized political parties during the upcoming 2024 Legislative Assembly elections in Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir. This initiative, which began during the 1998 General Elections to the Lok Sabha, allows national and recognized state parties to use government-owned television and radio channels for campaigning, ensuring equitable media exposure.
The scheme provides each eligible party with a base time of 45 minutes on All India Radio and Doordarshan, with additional time allocated based on their performance in the last assembly elections. No party will be allowed more than 15 minutes of broadcast time in a single session. The broadcast period will be between the publication of the candidate list and two days before the polling date in each state. The actual scheduling of broadcasts will be determined by Prasar Bharati in consultation with the ECI.
Parties will be required to submit transcripts and recordings in advance, adhering to strict guidelines set by the Commission. Content restrictions include prohibitions on criticizing other countries, attacking religions or communities, inciting violence, and making defamatory statements.
In addition to party broadcasts, Prasar Bharati will organize up to two panel discussions or debates, with each eligible party nominating a representative to participate. The ECI will approve the coordinators for these discussions in consultation with Prasar Bharati.
A new feature of this year’s scheme is the introduction of digital time vouchers, which allow parties to manage their broadcast time more flexibly. These vouchers, available in denominations of five minutes, are part of the ECI’s efforts to modernize the process through an Information Technology (IT) platform.
This initiative is part of the ECI’s ongoing efforts to ensure fair and balanced media access for all recognized political parties during elections, reinforcing the democratic process by providing a level playing field in the media landscape.
