Grant of Paid Holiday - Haryana & Maharashtra Poll Day

ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA

Telephone Number :011.23052246

Fax 01.1-23052001 

Website: www.eci.gov.in

Nirvachan Sadan, Ashok Road,

New Delhi - 110001

Dated - 30 September 2019

No, 78/EPS/2019

To,

1 The secretary to the Govt. of India, M/o personnel public Grievances & pensions, Department of personnel North and Training Block, New Delhi. 

2 The chief secretaries and chief Electoral officers of 

a. Haryana, Chandigarh 

b. Maharashtra, Mumbai.

Subject: -  General Election to Legislative Assemblies of Maharashtra and Haryana 2019, Grant of paid Holiday & Regarding.

Sir/Madam, 

The commission has announced the schedule to Legislative Assemblies for General Election Note of Maharashtra and Haryana, 2019 vide its press No' ECI/PN/83/2019, dated 2l September 2019,which commission's website is available on regard, I am directed http://cci.gov.in , under the head process releases, In this Representation of to invite your attention to section 1.358 of the The Representation of the People Act, 1951 which provides for the grant of paid holiday to the employs on the day of poll. The section 135B is reproduced

"135B. Grant of paid holiday to employees on the day of poll.— 

(1) Every person employed in any business, trade, industrial undertaking or any other establishment and entitled to vote at an election to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly of a State shall, on the day of poll, be granted a holiday. 

 (2) No deduction or abatement of the wages of any such person shall be made on account of a holiday having been granted in accordance with sub-section (1) and if such person is employed on the basis that he would not ordinarily receive wages for such a day, he shall nonetheless be paid for such day the wages he would have drawn had not a holiday been granted to him on that day.

(3) If an employer contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1) or sub-section (2), then such employer shall be punishable with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees.

(4) This section shall not apply to any elector whose absence may cause danger or substantial loss in respect of the employment in which he is engaged.

2. The above provisions establishments require that all the electors who are employees of establishment and shops including granted a paid those which work on shift basis shall be election holiday on the day of poll in the constituency where a general resident is to be held.Further, there may be cases where a person is ordinarily in an industrial of the constituency and registered as an elector, may be serving/ employed undertaking or an establishment having located outside the constituency electors a including general election. It is clarified that in such a situation, even those would be casual workers working outside the constituency concerned 1358(1) entitled to the benefit of a paid holiday extended under the section of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

3. The Poll daily wage/casual workers are also entitled for a holiday and wages day as provided in Section l35B of the R.P. Act, 1951. all

4 concerned l'he commission and desires that suitable instructions should be issued to a copy thereof be endorsed to the commission information for its and record.

 5 the receipt of this letter may please be acknowledged.