77.
| (1) Every officer, clerk, candidate, and agent authorized to attend at a polling station, or at the counting of the votes, shall, before so attending make a statutory declaration of secrecy substantially in form M set out in the First Schedule to this Act. Such declaration shall be made by the returning officer in the presence of a Justice of the Peace, and by a presiding officer or a counting officer in the presence of a Justice of the Peace or of the returning officer, and when made by any other person shall be made in the presence of the returning officer or of a Justice of the Peace or of a presiding officer or of a counting officer. |
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| (2) Every officer, clerk, candidate, and agent in attendance at a polling station shall maintain, and aid in maintaining, the secrecy of the voting in such station, and shall not communicate, except for some purpose authorized by law, before the poll is closed, to any person any information as to the name or number on the register of electors of any elector who has or has not applied for a ballot paper or voted at that station, or as to the official mark. |
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| (3) No such officer, clerk, candidate or agent, and no person whosoever shall attempt to obtain in the polling station information as to the recognized political party or independent group for which any voter in such station is about to vote or has voted, or communicate at any time to any person any such information obtained in a polling station as to the recognized political party or independent group for which any voter in such station is about to vote or has voted, or as to the number on the reverse of the ballot paper given to any voter at such station. |
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| (4) Every officer, clerk, candidate, and agent in attendance at the counting of the votes shall maintain, and aid in maintaining, the secrecy of the voting, and shall not attempt to ascertain at such counting the number on the reverse of any ballot paper or communicate any information obtained at such counting as to the recognized political party or independent group for which any vote is given by any particular ballot paper. |
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| (5) No person, except a presiding officer acting for a purpose authorized by this Act, or a person authorized by the presiding officer and acting for such purpose as aforesaid, shall communicate or attempt to communicate with any voter after such voter has received a ballot paper and before he has placed the same in a ballot box. |
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| (6) Every person who acts in contravention of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction after summary trial before a Magistrate, be liable to a tine not exceeding five hundred rupees or to imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding six months. |
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| (7) Every person who is convicted of an offence under this section shall, by such conviction, become incapable for a period of seven years from the date of his conviction, of being registered as an elector or of voting at an election under this Act. |
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Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts