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Hours after the withdrawal of the Kolkata High Court on Wednesday State Elections Commissioner Rajiva SinhaTelling him to “step down, if it is difficult for him to take orders” on the deployment of central forces in West Bengal during the panchayat elections, Governor C.V. Ananda Bose reportedly refused to accept the letter of accession, causing a new administrative crisis in the state.
Former general secretary Rajiva Sinha was appointed as the Election Commissioner on June 7 after the Governor approved his appointment. The next day, he announced panchayat elections in the state—a move opposition parties called “hasty”.
Raj Bhavan’s sources said the governor called Sinha after he took office, but did not meet him. A source said, “After the Supreme Court admonished the state election commissioner, saying if it is difficult for him to take orders, he can step down, the governor decided not to accept Sinha’s accession letter.”
It is an unprecedented constitutional crisis. The Governor had given his approval to appoint Rajiva Sinha as the State Election Commissioner. There is no precedent that after the gesture was given, the governor refused to accept the letter of accession. We don’t know what to do next. After consulting with legal experts and senior officials, the state government will likely make a decision on this matter,” said a senior state government official.
The governor’s refusal to accept Sinha’s accession letter followed the Supreme Court’s strong observations against him.
On Wednesday, the Kolkata High Court ordered the polling commission to deploy at least 825 companies – the number of CDF personnel deployed during the 2013 panchayat elections – to the state within 24 hours after exempting the SEC’s request for only 22 companies of the CDF. forces.
The Divisional Assembly of Chief Justice Sivagnanam and Justice Uday Kumar noted that if it is difficult for the State Election Commissioner to take orders, he can step down.
“A very unfortunate situation. You are a neutral body… We have placed great faith in the SEC (State Elections Commission) and that is why we have said that the final decision should rest with the SEC. The court should not lose faith in the system, but if people eventually start to lose faith, what is the purpose of holding elections? “
The independence of the commission should not be questioned. I have gone to the highest court (the Supreme Court). Now, accept their judgment. If it is difficult for the Commissioner (Rajiva Sinha) to take orders, he can step down. Perhaps, the ruler could appoint someone else. Even earlier there was no representation from the committee. If they’re too busy, it’s better to wind down their business, if they’re not in a position to do so, then leave it to us, and we’ll deal with it,” Khan Chowdhury, who filed a contempt action against the SEC for failing to order central forces within 48 hours of a court directive Supreme.
“The State Election Commission shall within 24 hours request a sufficient number of Central Troops to be deployed to all the Districts, and the number of companies/battalion to be taken shall not be less than the Troops taken for the 2013 Elections (Panchayats)…”
While maintaining that the number of districts in West Bengal has increased from 17 in 2013 to 22 currently, and also that the number of voters has increased in these 10 years, the Supreme Court said: “…Therefore, we expect that the State Election Commission should Taking note of this direction in an appropriate and effective manner and this court hopes to comply with the direction both in letter and in spirit and any attempt to make the matter impractical may lead to serious consequences.”
On June 13, the Supreme Court directed the SEC to order Central Troops to deploy to counties it indicated were sensitive, assess the situation and deploy accordingly to other regions. On June 15, the Supreme Court expressed its dissatisfaction with the delay in implementing the previous order to deploy the central forces in all governorates. Then the West Bengal Securities Commission and the West Bengal government moved the Supreme Court against the Supreme Court orders. The Supreme Court rejected their petitions, saying that “holding elections cannot be a license for violence.”
The Supreme Court said on Wednesday: “It is our view that such deployment of troops from other states to be effected on the date of the ballot will not produce the desired result… The State Election Commission will independently assess the demand and as noted earlier, the assessment must be honest.” Bearing in mind that the State Election Commission has a constitutional obligation to ensure free and fair elections and to maintain the purity of the entire electoral process, we hope and trust that the directives will be complied with effectively and promptly without wasting time.”
Meanwhile, SEC sources said they are seeking a legal opinion on what to do next after the Supreme Court ordered the deployment of at least 825 Central Paramilitary Corps to the state. “We are consulting with legal opinion on whether we should take a SLPP member back to the High Court or comply with the High Court’s decision,” said a senior state election commission official.
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