Alipurduar (West Bengal): Seven members of a family all in government service have decided to contest the Panchayat elections, which are slated to be held on July 8, to avoid poll duties and to attend a family wedding in West Bengal's Alipurduar. According to sources, a marriage was scheduled for July 5 and the reception on July 7. To avoid the poll duties, Pal's family members decided to contest the polls as independent candidates.
Many of the family members are working as teachers and as per the rules, they have to accept election duty. The seven members used the law to their advantage to avoid poll duty and to attend the marriage ceremony on July 7. All of them deposited Rs 500 each and filed the nomination papers to contest the polls and now, they cannot be deployed as poll officials. This bizarre incident took place in Palpara of Jateshwar village in the Falakata block of the Alipurduar district.
And it was the marriage of the son of retired high school headmaster Jiban Krishna Pal from Jateshwar Palpara. The marriage is slated for July 5 while the reception is on July 7 ahead of single-phase Panchayat elections in West Bengal. As a result, the family members were worried about how to discharge poll duties for the Panchayat polls the day after the main ceremony on July 7.
Jiban Krishna Pal, the retired headmaster of Jateshwar High School, said that his son's marriage is on July 5, and on July 7, the reception will be held. "The family members felt that if they accept that election duty they have to undergo training and then polling duty. So, they have decided to contest the polls in order to attend the wedding ceremonies," Pal said.
Govind Pal, an independent candidate, who is a teacher by profession, said, "My nephew's marriage is on July 5. So, it is not possible to discharge the poll duty. That is why I entered the poll fray." Another independent candidate, Shipra Das Pal said, "My child is young and there's a marriage ceremony. So, my husband Swapan Pal and I are contesting as independent candidates."
The district administration of Alipurduar claimed that 25 candidates entered the fray for one seat and officials claimed that it is a record of sorts in the Panchayat polls history in the State. The district administration is worried as to how they should print 25 candidates on a single ballot. There is no infrastructure in the Alipurduar district to print ballots for 25 nominees. Hence, ballots are being printed in the neighbouring Cooch Behar district.
