West Bengal panchayat polls: State EC moves Supreme Court
State election commission says under the laws of West Bengal there is no provision for receiving nominations through emails
Kolkata: The West Bengal state election commission on Wednesday moved the Supreme Court, challenging the ruling of a division bench of the Calcutta high court that ordered the commission to treat nominations filed through electronic messaging as legitimate.
In the hurriedly filed appeal, the apex court pointed out five defects, which were eventually addressed. The matter, however, has not yet been posted for hearing. But with another court case starting, it is still unclear if polling for panchayat seats will take place on 14 May as scheduled.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPM, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will contest the state’s petition in the apex court. The CPM has said, and it has been recorded in the division bench’s judgement, that it sent at least 800 emails to file nominations.
The BJP, which was not a party in the dispute at the division bench, said on Tuesday that it, too, had sent some 2,000 emails to file nominations.
The commission has said that under the laws of West Bengal there is no provision for receiving nominations through emails.
But the division bench has ruled that under the Information Technology Act of 2000 it should have accepted nominations through emails, and that it could have prevented bloodshed and loss of life.
Meanwhile, another division bench of the Calcutta high court will on Thursday pass its verdict over security arrangements for polling.
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