West Bengal CEO Aariz Aftab at an all-party meeting in Kolkata Wednesday. Partha PaulThe BJP on Wednesday demanded online filing of nomination papers for the panchayat polls in the state next year and also urged the West Bengal State Election Commission (WBSEC) to hold the rural polls under the security cover of the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF).
A BJP delegation led by Shishir Bajoria went to the office of the state election commission in the afternoon and submitted a letter in this regard.
“We draw your attention to the panchayat elections held in 2018, wherein it was seen that the ruling party using their muscle power and with the active help of the West Bengal Police, ensured that many opposing candidates could not file their nominations. This resulted in many instances of the ruling party candidates being declared elected unopposed. Apprehending a similar situation and in the interest of ensuring free and fair elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party requests the Commission to permit the filing of nominations online or alternately receiving nominations electronically — email or WhatsApp — before the last date and permitting such candidates to file the paper after the last date,” the party said in the letter.
The party also demanded that the panchayat polls should be held under the security cover of central forces given the history of poll violence in West Bengal.
“We demand that the forthcoming three-tier panchayat elections are conducted under the watch of the CAPF. Regrettably, the West Bengal Police is completely politicised and is nothing other than the uniformed force of the ruling party. We also draw your attention to the massive post-Vidhan Sabha poll violence where the role of the WB Police was only of bystanders,” wrote the party.