Polls likely on Feb 13

Several political parties,including the Congress,have urged the EC to hold the polls in one phase.

Elections to five states — Punjab,Uttar Pradesh,Uttarakhand,Manipur and Goa – are due early next year. The elections schedule for the five states are expected to be announced by the EC soon.

Meanwhile,the EC has directed the Chief Electoral Officer,Punjab to ensure that officers likely to be put on poll duty should not serve in their home districts and those who have completed three years in a district during the last four years or before March 31,2012 should be transferred immediately.

The directions also state that apart from district election officers,returning officers and assistant returning officers, other district-level officers like additional district magistrates,deputy collectors,sub-divisional magistrates,tehsildars,block development officers or any other officer proposed to be used for election work will be covered under these instructions. As far as officers in the police department are concerned,these instructions will be applicable to range IGs,DIGs,commandants of state armed police,SSPs,SPs,additional SPs,sub-divisional heads of police,inspectors,sub-inspectors,sergeant majors or equivalent rank who are likely to be put on election duty.

The ECI also desired that the officers against whom Commission has recommended disciplinary action or who have been charged for any lapses in any election-related work shall not be assigned any poll-related duty. The Commission further desires that no officer,against whom a criminal case is pending in any court of law,be associated with the election work or duty. While implementing the directions of the ECI,the Chief Electoral Officer of the state shall invariably be consulted while posting the new persons in place of the present incumbents,who stand transferred as per the Commission’s policy.

Any officer who is due to retire within the coming six months would be exempted from the purview of the above mentioned directions. Such officers will not be engaged in election duties during the forthcoming polls to the state assembly. Similarly,the officers who are on extension of service or re-employed in different capacities will not be associated with any election-related work except those with the office of the CEOs.