English हिन्दी
Connect with us

India News

Ex-CEC Krishnamurthy questions EC on Gujarat poll schedule delay

Published

8 years ago

on

TS Krishnamurthy

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]TS Krishnamurthy joins Opposition chorus questioning why poll panel announced schedule for Himachal Pradesh elections but not for Gujarat

Former chief election commissioner TS Krishnamurthy has said that the ongoing row over the Election Commission’s decision to announce the poll schedule for Himachal Pradesh while deferring the same for Gujarat, despite the term of the two assemblies ending within weeks of each other was “an avoidable controversy”.

Krishnamurthy, who headed the Election Commission (EC) between February 2004 and May 2005, is the second former chief election commissioner after SY Quraishi to raise questions on the poll panel’s decision of deferring the announcement on Gujarat assembly elections – an issue that has also been red flagged by the Congress and other Opposition parties.

In an interview to The Indian Express, Krishnamurthy – who like SY Quraishi has often taken a stern stand against actions taken by the poll panel or the government with regard to conduct of elections – claimed that had he been the CEC now, he would have “found a solution” to conduct the Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat assembly polls simultaneously.

“All this controversy could have been avoided with better management,” Krishnamurthy was quoted as saying by the Indian Express. “I suppose they (the EC) could have announced both (Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh polls) together, either one week before or one week after. I am not looking at whether the decision was influenced or not. I am concerned with whether, administratively, a solution could have been found. I think I would have found a solution,” the former CEC added.

Earlier, ex-CEC SY Quraishi had taken a similar line on the controversy, claiming that the move to break from the EC’s convention of announcing elections together in states where incumbent governments are completing their terms within six months of each other had raised “serious questions”.

The Congress, which is the principal political rival of the BJP in both Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, has claimed that incumbent CEC, AK Joti has possibly delayed announcing the poll schedule for Gujarat under pressure” from the Centre, to enable the ruling BJP governments at the Centre and in the western state to announce sops for voters that will help its electoral prospects. While the Congress is in government in Himachal Pradesh and feels that it is in a position to retain power in the hill state, it hopes to end the 22-year-long BJP rule in Gujarat in the upcoming polls – riding on a reported anti-incumbency wave and major agitations against the state’s BJP regime by Dalit, Adivasi, Muslim and Patel communities (which together account for over 50 per cent of the state’s electorate).

The Gujarat assembly’s term ends on January 22, 2018 while the term of the Himachal Pradesh assembly ends on January 7. It was expected that the EC would announce the poll schedules for both the states together but last week, chief election commissioner AK Joti announced the election date only for Himachal Pradesh.

Joti cited relief and rehabilitation of the flood-affected in Gujarat as one of the factors that influenced the decision to delay poll announcement in the state.

However, Krishnamurthy countered Joti’s argument by saying: “Emergency flood relief work is to be done by bureaucrats, not politicians. The Model Code of Conduct (for elections) does not stand in the way of any emergency relief work. It does not prevent existing projects from continuing. Only new projects should not be announced during the MCC period.”

While Krishnamurthy and Quraishi have both raised questions over the possible administrative lapse of the EC in delaying the announcement of the Gujarat poll schedule, the Congress has maintained that the poll panel’s move was aimed at “helping the BJP”.

The Congress has argued that several pro-people schemes that the Vijay Rupani-led Gujarat government had planned to announce right before the announcement of the elections in order to woo voters would have been stalled due to the MCC had the poll schedule been announced last week, along with that of Himachal. What adds some weight to this argument is the fact that the BJP government in the state seems in a hurry of announcing sops and schemes.

On Monday, Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani had announced farm loans of up to Rs 3 lakh at zero per cent interest – a move that is likely to benefit around 2.5 million farmers mostly concentrated in rural Gujarat where the BJP seems to be losing ground. Sources say a few more such announcements are expected before October 22 – the tentative date by when the EC is expected to announce the schedule for the state’s election.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

India News

BJP releases first list of 47 candidates for Kerala assembly polls

The BJP has released its first list of 47 candidates for the Kerala Assembly elections scheduled for April 9, including three former Union ministers.

Published

11 hours ago

on

March 16, 2026

By

BJP releases list of candidates

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday released its first list of 47 candidates for the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections scheduled for April 9.

Voting will take place for all 140 seats in the state assembly, with counting of votes scheduled for May 4. A party or coalition needs at least 70 seats to secure a majority in the House.

Among the candidates announced in the first list are three former Union ministers — Rajeev Chandrasekhar, V. Muraleedharan and George Kurian.

Key candidates announced

Kerala BJP chief and former Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar has been fielded from the Nemom assembly constituency. In the 2024 Lok Sabha election, Chandrasekhar lost the Thiruvananthapuram seat to three-time MP Shashi Tharoor, but he led in the Nemom assembly segment during that contest. The party believes this performance strengthens its prospects in the constituency.

Nemom has held political significance for the BJP since 2016, when senior leader O. Rajagopal won the seat and became the party’s first-ever MLA in the 140-member Kerala Legislative Assembly. The victory marked the BJP’s initial breakthrough in the state assembly.

However, the seat returned to the Left camp in the 2021 Assembly election when V. Sivankutty defeated BJP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan.

Former Union minister V. Muraleedharan will contest from the Kazhakoottam constituency, while George Kurian has been nominated from Kanjirappally.

Other candidates in the list

According to the list released by the party, several other candidates have also been announced for key constituencies. P. C. George will contest from Poonjar, R. Sreelekha from Vattiyoorkavu and Padmaja Venugopal from Thrissur.

The BJP has also nominated Sobha Surendran from Palakkad, Navya Haridas from Kozhikode North and Kavitha K. S. from Sulthanbathery, a reserved constituency.

Raji Prasad will contest from the Kunnathur seat reserved for Scheduled Castes, while R. Rashmi has been fielded from Kottarakkara.

Political backdrop in Kerala

Kerala’s electoral politics has traditionally alternated between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). However, the BJP has been attempting to expand its presence in the state.

The alternating trend was interrupted in the 2021 Assembly election when the electorate returned the Pinarayi Vijayan-led government to power for a second consecutive term.

The BJP believes recent electoral performances and local body successes have strengthened its position as it prepares to contest the upcoming assembly polls.

Continue Reading

India News

Fire in ICU at SCB medical college hospital in Cuttack kills 10 patients

Ten patients died after a fire broke out in the trauma ICU at SCB medical college hospital in Cuttack early Monday morning. Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced compensation and ordered a judicial probe.

Published

21 hours ago

on

March 16, 2026

By

A major fire at the trauma care intensive care unit (ICU) of SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, Odisha, early Monday morning left ten patients dead and several hospital staff members injured.

According to officials, the fire broke out between 2:30 am and 3:00 am in the trauma ICU where critically ill patients were undergoing treatment. Emergency teams rushed to the scene soon after the incident, and multiple fire engines were deployed to control the blaze and assist in rescue operations.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said hospital staff were injured while evacuating patients from the affected ward during the emergency.

Patients shifted as rescue operations continued

Following the fire, 23 patients were moved to other departments and wards within the hospital to ensure their safety and continued medical care.

Speaking to reporters, the Chief Minister said seven critically ill patients died while being shifted to other ICUs and wards, while three more succumbed later.

“A total of 23 patients have been shifted to other departments. Seven serious patients died while shifting to other ICUs and wards, while another three patients died later. I have directed the concerned officers for proper treatment of the injured patients,” Majhi said.

Chief minister visits hospital, announces compensation

Soon after the incident, Majhi visited the hospital along with Odisha Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling to review the situation. They also met patients who were undergoing treatment at the facility.

The Chief Minister announced financial assistance of ₹25 lakh for the families of each deceased patient.

He also ordered a judicial probe into the incident to determine the cause of the fire and examine safety measures at the hospital.

Authorities continue to monitor the condition of injured staff members and patients who were shifted from the ICU.

Continue Reading

India News

Arvind Kejriwal moves Supreme Court against Delhi High Court order in excise policy case

Arvind Kejriwal has approached the Supreme Court challenging a Delhi High Court order related to proceedings in the excise policy case and alleging violation of his fundamental rights.

Published

21 hours ago

on

March 16, 2026

By

Arvind Kejriwal

Aam Aadmi Party chief and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has approached the Supreme Court of India challenging certain proceedings in the Delhi excise policy case and alleging a violation of his fundamental rights.

In a petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, Kejriwal has questioned a decision of the Delhi High Court that put a freeze on remarks related to the investigation conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The petition also challenges an order of the High Court Chief Justice rejecting Kejriwal’s request to transfer the case to another bench.

Plea seeks change of bench

Earlier, on March 11, Kejriwal and several others submitted a representation to Delhi High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya seeking reassignment of the case to what they described as an “impartial” judge.

In the representation, Kejriwal stated that he had a “grave, bona fide and reasonable apprehension” that the matter may not receive an impartial hearing before the current bench.

However, the Chief Justice declined the request and said the petition had been assigned as per the existing roster.

According to the communication sent by the High Court’s Registrar General on March 13 to eight individuals including Kejriwal, the Chief Justice noted that any decision on recusal must be taken by the judge hearing the matter and that there was no reason to transfer the petition administratively.

Order on trial court proceedings also challenged

Kejriwal has also challenged a March 9 order passed by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma of the Delhi High Court.

In that order, Justice Sharma had stayed a trial court direction that called for an investigation into a CBI officer who handled the excise policy case. The High Court had also asked the trial court to defer proceedings connected to the anti-money laundering aspect of the case.

Justice Sharma had further rejected certain observations made by the trial court while discharging Kejriwal and 22 others, stating that some of those remarks were erroneous.

Hearing expected on CBI plea

Meanwhile, Justice Sharma is scheduled to hear a petition filed by the CBI challenging the discharge of Kejriwal, former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and others in the excise policy case.

The matter remains under judicial consideration as the legal challenge now moves to the Supreme Court.

Continue Reading

Trending

© Copyright 2022 APNLIVE.com