Patna: Despite a strict ban on mobile phones inside polling booths, several photographs and videos from inside voting stations in Bihar surfaced on social media during the first phase of the state assembly elections on Thursday.
Clips circulating widely, particularly on Facebook, showed voters revealing which candidate they had chosen on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) — and in one case, even displaying the VVPAT paper slip, which confirms the vote.
However, PatnaPress has not independently verified the authenticity of these images and videos being circulated on social media platforms.
The incidents have sparked concern over violations of Election Commission of India (ECI) rules designed to protect the secrecy and integrity of the ballot.
Under Rule 49M of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, voters are not permitted to carry mobile phones or electronic devices inside polling booths. They must deposit them at designated counters before entering the voting area. The rule prohibits photography and video recording inside booths to prevent voter coercion, identity exposure, or tampering with the voting process.
Only election officials are allowed to carry official communication devices. The ECI had reinforced this guideline as part of 17 new reforms for the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, which included the creation of secure deposit counters for storing phones and a 100-metre restriction zone where devices must remain switched off.
The videos, which appeared from multiple constituencies, drew widespread criticism from political observers and social media users, who questioned how such footage could have been recorded and uploaded despite heavy security presence.
An official response from the Election Commission of India was awaited at the time of filing this report.
