cVIGIL Citizen Mobile App of the Election Commission, developed to fast-track receiving and addressing complaints about violations of model code of conduct (MCC), appears to be a hit with the voters in the State.
Chief Electoral Officer Teeka Ram Meena said that people have started using the app effectively to register complaints about code of conduct violations, with over 11,000 complaints received so far. Of this, over 7,000 were from Kannur. In fact, the voters had used the feature successfully in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, when about 64,000 complaints were received. Of this, 58,000 were found to be genuine, leading to action taken, he said.
It was a weapon in the hands of the citizens to report complaints wherever MCC violations were noticed and to bring such violations to the attention of the poll officials, Mr. Meena added.
Geo-tagging feature
The android-based mobile app allows every citizen/voter in a constituency to report breach of model code of conduct as well as expenditure violations by taking photo/audio/video using mobile phones and uploading them after signing in to the application. The app even permits citizens to register anonymous complaints. It also automatically enables geo-tagging when users switch on their mobile camera to post complaints, helping field staff to ascertain the precise location of the incident.
The app does not allow uploading of pre-recorded or old images and videos. What one has to do is simply click a picture or shoot a video, describe the activity and upload it. This enables flying squads to reach the spot soon. The application connects the vigilant citizen with the district control room, returning officer, and field verification unit such as flying squads, Static Surveillance Teams, ensuring rapid and accurate reporting and instant action. cVIGIL Investigator app helps field units reach the spot and investigate the cases and upload reports.
Launched in 2018, the app was widely used in the Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telangana, and Mizoram held in the same year. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, a total of 1,10,030 cVIGIL complaints were redressed.
