Candidates must state reason for withdrawal of nominations: SEC

Kolkata: The state Election Commission (SEC) on Monday directed the District Panchayat Election Officer across the state to ensure that a candidate withdrawing his nomination clearly states the reason behind his / her doing so.

The move comes in the wake of allegations that candidates are compelled to withdraw their nominations.

The secretary of SEC has stated in the directive that under no circumstances the notice of withdrawal of candidature may be accepted unless the candidate delivers it in person or by his/ her proposer or election agent who has been authorised in writing by the candidate.

“The Panchayat Returning Officer must be satisfied as to the genuineness of the notice and the identity of the person delivering it before accepting the notice of withdrawal,” the directive read.

The nomination filing for the Panchayat polls started on June 9 and is slated to continue till June 15. So, six working days have been allotted for the filing. The election is scheduled to be held in one phase on July 8.

The Opposition parties like the BJP and Congress have filed PIL (Public Interest Litigation) in Calcutta High Court demanding a longer period for nomination filing. The BJP has urged the court to give 12 days for the same.

The SEC has already directed the police to impose prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to ensure that the nomination process is held safely. The order will be in force till Thursday.

“We have decided to impose prohibitory orders in a one-km radius of nomination centres,” a senior SEC official said.

The SEC has already issued orders allowing only two people inside a nomination centre for the filing.

Some persons and even cops were injured in a clash between Trinamool Congress and CPM at Borshul in East Burdwan on Monday morning. The incident allegedly took place while the CPM candidate was on way to filing nominations. There was brick batting between the two party supporters and police had to intervene to bring the situation under control. The Officer-in-Charge of Saktigarh PS was also injured in the clash.