Section 24 in The M.P. Panchayat Nirvachan Niyam, 1995
24. Appointment of Presiding and Polling Officers.
(1)The Returning Officer shall with the prior approval of the District Election Officer, appoint a Presiding Officer for each polling station and such Polling Officer or Officers to assist the Presiding Officer, as he thinks necessary :[Provided that no person who is not,-(i)a Government servant; or(ii)a servant of local authority; or(iii)a servant of a University established or incorporated by or under a Provincial or State Act; or(iv)any other institution, concern or undertaking which is established by or under a Provincial or State Act or which is not controlled, or not financed wholly or substantially by funds provided directly or indirectly, by the State Government;shall not be appointed as Presiding Officer.] [Substituted by Notification No. F.1-40-XXII-P-2, dated 10-4-2002. Prior to substitution it was as under: 'Provided that no person who is not a Government servant or a servant of any authority under the Municipal law or any public undertaking under the State Government shall be appointed as Presiding Officer'.]Provided further that if a Polling Officer is absent from the polling station, the Presiding Officer may appoint any person, who is present at the polling station other than a person who has been employed by or on behalf of, or has been otherwise working for, a candidate in or about the election, to be the Polling Officer during the absence of the former officer, and inform the Returning Officer accordingly.(2)A Polling Officer shall subject to the directions of the Commission if so authorised by the Presiding Officer, perform all or any of the functions of Presiding Officer under these rules.(3)If the Presiding Officer, owing to illness or any other unavoidable cause, is obliged to absent himself from the polling station, his functions shall be performed by such Polling Officer as has been previously authorised by the Returning Officer to perform such functions during any such absence.(4)Reference in these rules to the Presiding Officer shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be deemed to include any person performing any function which he is authorised to perform under sub-rule (2), or as the case may be, under sub-rule (3).
