Uttar Pradesh poll schedule not before Jan 3
Nov 24, 2006 - 1:51:20 AM
, Reviewed by: Priya Saxena
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Gopalswamy refused to comment on Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's formal request for organising polls in February. 'We have received a communication from the chief minister in this regard and we have also heard representatives of different political parties today,' he said.
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By Indo Asian News Service,
[RxPG] Lucknow, Nov 23 - The schedule for the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, due early next year, will be finalised only after the electoral rolls are updated, Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalswamy said here Thursday.
'Jan 3 is the deadline fixed for the finalisation of all electoral rolls in the state and unless that is done, we cannot take a decision on the schedule for the assembly elections in the state,' Gopalswamy told a press conference.
'Only 67 percent of the state's voters have received photo identity cards, while there is an unending list of complaints about fudging in the electoral rolls,' he said.
'After the inclusion of 4.6 million new voters in the rolls, election officials have received as many as 1.06 million objections,' he said, expressing his shock at the state of the voters' list.
Evading queries about the possible poll dates, he said: 'Well, elections will be held positively before May 14, 2007, as the next assembly has to be constituted on or before that date when the existing assembly completes its full term.'
While the last elections were held here in February 2002, the formal constitution of the assembly was delayed after the polls threw a hung verdict and the house was constituted May 14.
Referring to his talks with political leaders here, he said, 'I have been told that the state education board has fixed an examination schedule between March and April, so it would not be possible to hold the elections during that period either.'
Gopalswamy refused to comment on Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's formal request for organising polls in February. 'We have received a communication from the chief minister in this regard and we have also heard representatives of different political parties today,' he said.
'However, we will use these as inputs to a final decision after all the pros and cons have been discussed with my two other - colleagues in the election commission,' he said.
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