Kolkata, 29 December (H.S.): The Election Commission has adopted a strict stance on the issue of establishing separate polling stations in multi-story residential buildings in West Bengal and has decided to hold a direct meeting with district magistrates and district election officers (DEOs). According to commission sources, Deputy Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti is reaching Kolkata on Tuesday and will hold a meeting with the concerned officials the same day.

According to sources, the meeting will be held on Tuesday afternoon with the district election officers of Kolkata North and South, North 24 Parganas, and South 24 Parganas. The meeting will take place at the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, Manoj Kumar Agarwal. Deputy Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti will travel from Delhi to Kolkata for this purpose.

Earlier, the Election Commission had given district magistrates a deadline for establishing new polling stations in multi-story buildings. However, only two applications for new polling stations were received within the stipulated period, which the commission questioned. The commission clearly stated that there was a lack of diligence on the part of the DEOs and a lack of necessary surveys.

In this regard, the commission had sent a letter to the state's Chief Electoral Officer, instructing the DEOs to conduct a fresh survey and submit a list of proposed polling stations by December 31. A warning was also issued that strict action could be taken if the report was not submitted within the stipulated timeframe. The deadline expires on Wednesday, and before that, the commission's representative is going to hold a meeting with the officials of the four districts.

According to political parties' assessments, the number of upscale multi-story residential buildings in Kolkata and surrounding assembly constituencies has increased significantly over the past two decades. Voters residing in such buildings in Kolkata constitute approximately 8 to 10 percent of the total electorate. It is alleged that due to security concerns, many residents of these buildings do not go out to vote on election day. Keeping this in mind, the Election Commission had proposed that separate polling stations be set up within residential complexes that have more than 300 voters. Furthermore, instructions were given to survey the feasibility of setting up polling stations in group housing societies, colonies, or settlements with 250 families or approximately 500 voters.

However, the Trinamool Congress has objected to this proposal from the outset. Last month, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also wrote two letters to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, questioning how polling stations could be set up inside residential complexes when they are generally located in government or semi-government buildings. Despite this, given the differing stances of various political parties, the Election Commission has decided not to hold separate discussions with any single party on this issue.

Now, after this crucial meeting at the Deputy Commissioner level, it is expected that the way forward regarding setting up polling stations in multi-story residential buildings will become clearer.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey