Meeting with the governor on preparations for the panchayat elections

Rajiva Sinha, the West Bengal state election commissioner (SEC), and governor C. V. Ananda Bose met on Sunday to talk about the state’s ongoing political violence, which has so far claimed eight lives, and preparations for the panchayat elections on July 8.

The two-hour meeting at Raj Bhavan also took place amid rumours in administrative circles that the SEC may be forced to reschedule the single-phase election and hold it in multiple phases if the central paramilitary forces are late in showing up to oversee the election process as required by the Calcutta high court and upheld by the Supreme Court.

According to SEC sources knowledgeable of the proceedings, just 364 companies of the paramilitary forces came as of Sunday, despite the state administration seeking 822 companies earlier this week. The authorities also said that the Centre was unable to inform the state of the whereabouts of the remaining 458 companies of soldiers.

Bose told reporters hours before to the meeting: “I did not contact him (Sinha). The SEC asked the governor for a meeting. I want to talk about a few crucial issues related to the elections. He’s busy, I realise that. He is welcome to come now or any day.

The governor’s comment was seen as an allusion to Sinha’s previous week refusal to meet with the former due to his “busy” schedule.

Before or after the meeting, Sinha did not address the media. According to representatives of Raj Bhavan, the governor requested a report from Sinha on the SEC’s proposed deployment of the central troops.

Since the election date was set on June 8, eight individuals have perished as a result of different acts of political violence.

The SEC was ordered by the high court to quickly requisition central troops and deploy them, particularly in seats that the polling organisation has previously designated as critical, as of June 13.

The Supreme Court heard arguments about the order from the state government and SEC. On June 20, the top court, however, rejected their appeals, noting that the SEC and the state government both believed that extra forces were necessary for fair elections.

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the head of the state Congress, said on Sunday that the 822 companies of central troops would not be sufficient for free and fair elections and sought the deployment of more forces. “I believe that this number of central forces (822 firms) is insufficient in relation to the number of booths. For the panchayat elections in West Bengal, I urge that additional federal soldiers be deployed there, the guy stated.