New Delhi: The Election Commission (ECI) announced on Monday that it has issued ‘digital vouchers’ to national and regional parties for the upcoming assembly elections in Assam, Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry. These vouchers will enable parties to campaign for free on Doordarshan and All India Radio (AIR).
According to the Commission, recognized parties have been allocated radio and television time for the elections in these states and union territories under Section 39A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. This entire process was completed digitally through an IT platform. Accordingly, digital time vouchers have been issued to all recognized national and state political parties in the five electoral states/UTs for the assembly elections through the IT platform.
The Election Commission clarified that the parties’ campaigning time will be from the release of the candidate list until two days before voting. The decision on which party will receive the time slot will be made at the state level through a draw (lottery) in the presence of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and party representatives.
The Election Commission stated that under this scheme, each party has been given 45 minutes of free initial time on the regional networks of Doordarshan and All India Radio. Additionally, additional time has been allocated based on the parties’ performance in the previous assembly elections.
Political parties must submit scripts and recordings of their speeches or campaigns in advance and strictly comply with the rules. These recordings can be made in any studio or directly at Doordarshan/All India Radio stations, as per Prasar Bharati’s standards.
The Election Commission (ECI) stated that in addition to the party broadcasts, Prasar Bharati will also organize two panel discussions or debates on Doordarshan and All India Radio. Each eligible political party can send a representative to participate in these programs, which will be moderated by an experienced coordinator.
It should be noted that Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry will have a single phase of voting on April 9, 2026. In Tamil Nadu, voting will take place for all 234 seats on April 23, 2026. In West Bengal, elections will be held in two phases: the first phase will be held on April 23 for 152 seats, and the second phase will be held on April 29 for 142 seats. Counting of votes for all states will take place on May 4, 2026.
