In view of the Covid-19 situation, a delegation of leaders of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to meet senior officials of the West Bengal Election Commission on Monday to seek to postpone the state’s referendum next month.
“The West Bengal BJP will meet with the state electoral commission on Monday to request a four-week postponement of elections in the remaining cities following the Covid-19 situation,” said state BJP spokesman Samik Bhattacharya.
West Bengal reported at least 3,427 Covid-19 infections on Sunday, bringing the number of active cases to 31,562. At least 33 people died on Sunday. The positive rate was 6%.
In December, the poll watchdog informed the Kolkata High Court that it recommended holding elections on January 22 for five cities – Asansol, Bidhannagar, Siliguri, Howrah and Chandannagar. It added that elections for the remaining 106 civic bodies will be held on Feb. 27.
Elections for the Calcutta Municipal Corporation were held on December 19. The petition to the high court cited the pandemic situation and called for the polls to be postponed to the remaining civic bodies. This month, the regulator issued a new notice saying the votes in five cities will be held on February 12 instead of January 22. The commission has yet to announce election dates for the remaining civic bodies.
The daily number of Covid-19 cases has soared past 24,000, with a positivity rate of 36%. Cases have declined over the past two weeks.
Complete News Source : Hindustan Times
