31. The returning officer or deputy returning officer shall cancel every ballot paper that(1) has not been provided by the scrutineer;
(2) does not bear the initials of the scrutineer;
(3) has not been marked;
(4) has been marked in favor of more candidates than the required number;
(5) has been marked in favor of a person who is not a candidate;
(6) has been marked elsewhere than in the spaces reserved for that purpose;
(7) bears fanciful or injurious entries;
(8) bears a mark by which the voter can be identified.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, no ballot paper under subparagraph 2 of the first paragraph may be rejected where the number of ballot papers found in the ballot box corresponds to the number of ballot papers which, according to the sum of declarations provided for in Schedule Vl and completed in accordance with section 25, were placed in it.
The scrutineer shall, in full view of the returning officer or deputy returning officer and the representative of any candidate who so desires, then initial the back of every ballot paper and add a note indicating the correction.
The returning officer or deputy returning officer shall reject a ballot paper by writing “Void” on it and initialing it.