The Election Commission announced three-phase elections in Bihar. (File)
Patna:
On Wednesday, the electoral commission dismissed Bihar’s excise commissioner, B Karthikey Dhanji, ahead of the state assembly ballot, while the seven-member CEC-led voting group Sunil Arora heard representatives of political parties on arrangements for the conduct of elections during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Election Commission had announced three-phase elections in Bihar, which was touted as one of the biggest elections in the world during the coronavirus pandemic.
The commission ordered the removal of the IAS agent from the 2008 batch from the post of excise commissioner with immediate effect for failing to present an effective action plan on preventive measures, a statement from the EC said.
The officer was also dismissed from his post due to the manifestly inadequate preparation when reviewing law enforcement agencies located or headquartered in Bihar, an EC statement said.
The voting committee that is here to refine arrangements for the conduct of polls in the state amid the surging COVID-19 cases has met with representatives of political parties.
The panel also held a meeting with state police officials.
Election commissioners Sushil Chandra and Rajiv Kumar are part of the state’s high-level team.
The EC panel will hold a press conference Thursday evening before concluding its three-day trip to Bihar, bound for the poll, an official said.
Voting for 243 assembly seats in Bihar will take place on October 28, November 3 and November 7. The counting of the votes will take place on November 10.
Representatives of the JD (U), BJP, RJD, Congress, CPI and LJP, among others, presented their views to the voting panel.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, head of JD (U), was represented by his leader in Lok Sabha, Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, party leader in Rajya Sabha RCP Singh and two ministers of state Ashok Choudhary and Sanjay Kumar Jha.
Mr Jha said JD (U) leaders urged the panel to complete the formalities in advance for ballot voting by electorate over 80 and divyangs because many of them , especially in rural areas, may not be able to complete the procedure themselves.
Regarding EC’s directive that no more than five people be present during the door-to-door campaign, they said candidates will comply. But if some local people flock to them in the process, they shouldn’t be penalized.
Mr Jha said they had also asked for clarification on whether there was a set number with regard to the hearing at public meeting venues reserved by the EC.
He said they were told officials had identified areas where public meetings could take place and that the number of those who attend will be determined by the space available to observe social distancing standards.
The BJP team urged the EC to have the central forces organize flag marches a day before the polls take place to instill confidence in the population. Voters must be properly identified according to their EPIC cards after removing their face masks.
They also demanded that political parties be informed of the arrangements made in the containment zones.
The BJP team included its Secretary General of State Janak Ram, EC cell state official Radhika Raman and the party’s state unity law and election chief SD Sanjay.
The main opposition RJD represented by its national spokesperson and MP Manoj Kumar Jha and State Unity spokesperson Chitranjan Gagan suggested that since the ballot takes place when the coronavirus is rampant, every voter should have insurance coverage.
In the event that a voter contracts an infection while voting, the government should take over the individual’s treatment for COVID.
They insisted that, regardless of the number of voters, special booths be installed in areas where an overwhelming majority of minorities, Dalits, backward and weaker sections of society live.
Lalu Prasad’s party has also called for ambulance and health insurance arrangements at polling stations.
Representatives of Congress have requested that permits for public meetings and processions be granted by BDOs given that the offices of district and division officers in many locations are located in remote locations. In addition, teams of medics should be available for 10 cabins in an area, they said.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
