HC STAYS BENGAL PANCHAYAT POLLS

KOLKATA: The Calcutta high court on Thursday directed all processes of the West Bengal rural polls to be suspended till April 16, when the state election commission (SEC) will submit a report on the steps it has taken to ensure peaceful filing of nomination by the Opposition.

The court will decide on the next step only after going through the report.

Justice Subrata Talukdar delivered the order after hearing a petition by the Bengal unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) decided to approach a division bench of the Calcutta high court against Thursday’s order. The BJP filed a caveat so that there is no hearing at a division bench without informing its counsel. Trinamool counsel and party MP Kalyan Banerjee argued both inside the court and outside that according to Article 243-O of the Constitution, courts do not have right to interfere in electoral matters after the election process started.

“There is no precedence of courts interfering in such situations. While we think the poll process kicks off with the notification by the election commission, the court thought otherwise,” said Banerjee outside the court. Justice Talukdar also observed that, if necessary, the date of polling can change.

Since the nomination process began on April 2, opposition parties have been alleging that the ruling party supporters have indulged in violence and strongarm tactics to prevent their candidates from filing nominations, an allegation dismissed by chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

The polling is scheduled to take place on May 1, 3 and 5. Counting is on May 8. Six people have died in violence surrounding the rural elections over the past month.