Ready for by-polls, Bengal govt informs EC

Sources further said that in that meeting the commission raised three queries. Those were the COVID-19 situation in the state, the duration of the festival holidays and the current flood situation in West Bengal.

Kolkata: West Bengal government on Wednesday informed the Election Commission of India (ECI) that they are ready for the by-elections. They conveyed this message at the virtual meeting that the commission had with the representatives of state governments and deputy chief electoral officers of seven states having pending by-polls. Sources said that the commission agreed for the by-polls in West Bengal before the forthcoming Durga Puja.

Sources further said that in that meeting the commission raised three queries. Those were the COVID-19 situation in the state, the duration of the festival holidays and the current flood situation in West Bengal.

The question was also raised on whether all those who will be involved with the polling process have been vaccinated or not. The representatives from the office of the Chief Election Officer (CEO), West Bengal clearly said that the situation was perfect for the by-polls. The CEO office will be closed from October 10 to 24. So if the polling days are announced now, it can be easily done within the next 24 days.

In the meeting representatives from states other than West Bengal raised questions on conducting polls during the festivals like Dussehra and Diwali. Some raised questions about the law and order situation. The representative from Assam said that the flood situation there was not conducive for conducting by-polls.

The meeting was attended by West Bengal's chief secretary, HK Dwivedi. Before the meeting, he sought details of the COVID-19 situation in the districts from the district magistrates. He also sought reports on the progress of vaccination in the districts like Murshidabad, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Cooch Behar and Nadia besides Kolkata, where there will be by-polls. It was concluded that the COVID-19 situation was more or less stable in all these districts.