HC asks SEC to file report on rural poll security arrangement

The Calcutta High Court today directed the State Election Commission to file a detailed report on May 4 on security arrangements for the panchayat elections after a section of state government employees filed a petition raising apprehensions on the issue.

The SEC had yesterday notified that the panchayat elections in West Bengal will be held on May 14.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice J Bhattacharya and Justice Arijit Banerjee asked the SEC to file its report on the security arrangement on May 4 when the matter would be heard again.

The Sarkari Karmachari Parishad (SKP), an organisation of state government employees, had moved a PIL before the court, saying they were apprehensive of their security during the panchayat elections when they would be put on poll duty.

Claiming that there was large-scale violence during previous panchayat elections in the state, SKP convenor Debasish Sil submitted that the number of security forces in the state was insufficient.

He prayed for a direction to the SEC to requisition central forces for assisting in the state security forces for conducting the local body polls.

West Bengal Police Additional Director General (Law and Order), Anuj Sharma submitted that there were sufficient armed police personnel for deployment in the polling booths across the state.

The elections to the three-tier panchayat in the state was earlier scheduled in three phases between May 1 and May 5, but were postponed following a stay by the high court on the election process.

A single bench of Justice Subrata Talukdar had on April 20 quashed the SEC's withdrawal of its own notification extending the date for filing nomination and had asked it to reschedule the date/dates for the elections after allowing extension in filing nominations by the candidates.

Justice Talukdar had later directed the commission to hold consultations with all stakeholders on the issue of security for the elections.

He had asked the SEC to independently take a decision on security arrangements following such consultations and inform the division bench presided the acting chief justice detailing the arrangements.