How is voter privacy and ballot secrecy protected on JANMAT Digital?

JANMAT Digital utilizes salted HMAC-SHA256 privacy tokens. IP addresses and connection identifiers are hashed with a cryptographic salt; raw IPs and personal identifiers are never stored alongside ballot choices.

Can one person vote multiple times using incognito mode, multiple tabs, or bots?

No. The system enforces multi-signal validation combining browser tokens with server-side salted IP hashing, atomic mutex locking, and passive challenge heuristics to prevent duplicate voting.

Is JANMAT Digital affiliated with the Election Commission of India (ECI)?

No. JANMAT Digital is an independent civic-tech platform providing public opinion surveys and institutional election services for RWAs, cooperative societies, trade chambers, and universities. It is not affiliated with the statutory Election Commission of India.

How can an RWA, cooperative society, or university organize a digital election?

Organizations can request a proposal or consultation through our 'Get Proposal' page. JANMAT Digital provides digital election administration, voter roster verification, secret ballot design, and verifiable tally logs.

ECI Form 12D Home Voting Rules for 85+ Senior Citizens & PwD Voters

Under the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, the Election Commission of India (ECI) provides an optional home voting facility using postal ballots for senior citizens aged 85 years and above (85+ AVSC) and Persons with Disabilities (PwD) having at least 40 percent benchmark disability as certified under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. The framework ensures accessible franchise participation while maintaining ballot secrecy and transparency in the presence of candidate representatives.

Eligibility and Form 12D Application Timeline

Following the notification of an election in a parliamentary or assembly constituency, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) visit the registered residences of eligible 85+ senior citizens and PwD-flagged electors listed in the electoral roll to deliver Form 12D and obtain an acknowledgment receipt.

Eligible Categories: Electors aged 85 years or older (AVSC) and electors marked as Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (AVPD) in the constituency electoral roll, along with notified essential service voters (AVES).
Submission Window: Completed Form 12D applications must be submitted to the Returning Officer within five days of the date of issue of the official election notification.
Irrevocable Postal Ballot Choice: Once an elector is approved by the Returning Officer for postal ballot voting under Form 12D, a "PB" (Postal Ballot) mark is recorded against their serial number in the marked copy of the electoral roll to prevent double voting at the polling station on polling day.

Mobile Polling Team Procedure and Secrecy Safeguards

To conduct home voting with full electoral integrity, the Returning Officer constitutes dedicated mobile polling teams comprising two polling officials, a micro-observer, security personnel, and a videographer.

Advance Schedule Intimation to Candidates: The Returning Officer shares the route plan and schedule of home visits with all contesting candidates in advance so their authorized polling agents can accompany and observe the process.
Temporary Voting Compartment at Residence: Polling officials set up a portable screen at the voter's home so the elector marks the postal ballot paper in complete secrecy.
Videography Without Compromising Ballot Secrecy: The handover of the ballot envelope, identity verification, and declaration signing (Form 13A) are videographed for auditability, while strictly ensuring the camera never captures the voter's actual ballot choice.
Two Scheduled Visits: If an approved elector is unavailable during the first scheduled visit, the mobile polling team notifies and conducts a second visit before polling day.

Official Source Attribution

This report is compiled from Rule 27A of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 and official Returning Officer handbooks published by the Election Commission of India (eci.gov.in).