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The Calcutta High Court on Thursday rejected a TMC plea challenging the Election Commission of India's directive to deploy central government and PSU employees for vote counting in the West Bengal Assembly polls.
The Court upheld the validity of the decision requiring Central Govt/PSU employees to count as supervisors/assistants, and the writ petition was dismissed. HC, in its observations, held that such appointments are within ECI's discretion and not illegal. The Court rejected apprehension that Central Govt. staff would act under political influence. Allegations were mere apprehensions without evidence. Any grievance can be raised via an election petition (Section 100, RP Act, 1951), the court observed. Welcoming the dismissal of the plea, West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal told ANI, "The writ petition has been dismissed. We have received a copy. No political party can decide who has to be included and who is not to be included. It is the discretion of the Returning Officer; he/she can include whoever he/she wants in counting or the entire election process." Earlier, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC candidate from Bhabanipur, Mamata Banerjee, on Wednesday, alleged that "observers from outside" and police officers unfamiliar with Bengal were being deployed in a manner that was targeting Trinamool Congress workers during the ongoing phase two of Assembly polling. She alleged that her party's youth block president was arrested in the morning, prompting her visit to Chetla, while also claiming that CRPF personnel had entered a TMC councillor's residence late at night without local police and assaulted family members. Also, in a dramatic escalation of the electoral battle for West Bengal, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court of India seeking the immediate removal of Ajay Pal Sharma, a high-profile UP-cadre IPS officer, from his position as a Police Observer. The petitioner alleged that Sharma, often nicknamed the "Singham of UP" for his record as an encounter specialist, has abandoned the neutrality required of an Election Commission (ECI) observer. The plea claimed that since assuming charge in South 24 Parganas, Sharma has engaged in "acts of intimidation" and "undue influence," specifically targeting political candidates. The petition argued that his presence "vitiates the electoral environment," undermining public confidence in the fairness of the 2026 Assembly Elections. (ANI)
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