The State Election Commission has written to the Karnataka government to live webcast from all polling stations for the upcoming Bengaluru civic election, but the Finance Department has turned down the proposal and instead agreed to webcast from only a limited number of polling booths, said G.S. Sangreshi, Karnataka State Election Commissioner.

Mr. Sangreshi, who was in conversation with The Hindu on Tuesday (March 17), said that he would again write to the government asking it to reconsider the decision and arrange for live webcasting from all polling stations. “Since we are shifting to ballot papers for this election, we need to ensure transparency and protect the integrity of the elections. In this light, webcasting from all polling stations is necessary,” he said.