Reacting to the statement made by Minister of State for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal that subsidies to Haj pilgrims would be restored, the Election Commission has directed the Central government to defer any such decision till the Assembly elections in two states and the various by-elections are through.‘‘Any decision on providing subsidy to Haj pilgrims should be deferred till October 13,’’ Commission spokesperson A.N. Jha said today, when asked whether the EC had received government’s response.He also informed about the EC decision to deploy Central government officials from Patna and other places as presiding officers in the sensitive Madhepura Lok Sabha constituency, which is going to polls on October 13.There are as many as 1,100 polling stations in the high-profile constituency. Jha said, six poll observers would monitor the polls and adequate security arrangements would be made in the constituency vacated by RJD Chief and Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav after he decided to retain Chhapra seat.On the issue of Haj subsidies, the EC had taken suo moto cognizance of media reports that government was planning to restore subsidies to the Haj pilgrims which the NDA government had curtailed last year.
