NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, SEPT 25
Voting for Bihar assembly elections will be held in three phases – first on October 28, second on November 3, and the third on November 7 – while counting of all votes will take place on November 10, the Election Commission announced on Friday.
Announcing the poll schedule for the 243-member Bihar assembly, Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora said there will be one of the biggest elections globally to be held during the prevailing COVID-19 situation.
He said the world has changed significantly since the last elections which were held for the Delhi assembly and the COVID-19 pandemic has forced a new normal in every aspect of our life.
He said the voting time will be extended by one hour and votes could be cast from 7 am till 6 pm, except for in the Left Wing Extremism-affect areas.
COVID-19 patients can vote in the last hour of the day, Arora said. He also said special protocols have been readied for voters who are COVID-positive patients.
The EC said 7 lakh hand sanitisers, 46 lakh masks, 6 lakh PPE kits, 6.7 lakh face shields, and 23 lakh pairs of hand gloves have been arranged for Bihar polls.
Besides, a postal ballot facility will be provided wherever required and requested. Social distancing norms will need to be followed at public gatherings during the poll campaign.
Arora further said anyone using social media for mischievous purposes, such as for flaring communal tension, during elections will have to face consequences, while hate speech will be also dealt with harshly by the Election Commission.
He said the number of phases for 243-member Bihar assembly polls has been reduced keeping in mind security arrangements and festive season, among other factors.
Voting for the first phase on October 28 will cover 71 assembly constituencies, while the second-phase voting on November 3 will cover 94 seats. The third phase of voting on November 7 will cover 78 assembly seats.
Counting of votes for all seats will take place on November 10.
SC refuses to entertain plea for deferment of Bihar Assembly polls
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea seeking to postpone the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A three-judge bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R. Subhash Reddy, and M R Shah also refused to grant liberty to the petitioner to give representation to the Election Commission in this regard.
“We can’t permit everybody to go to the Election Commission. We can only permit you to withdraw the petition,” the bench said.
The matter was then dismissed as withdrawn.
The top court was hearing the plea filed by one Ajay Kumar who contended that the general assembly elections cannot be held smoothly due to the pandemic.
The plea sought to hold the Bihar Assembly elections until the situation becomes normal.
