Tripura municipal polls: SC directs MHA to immediately provide two companies of CAPF
New Delhi, Nov 25: The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to provide two additional companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to secure every polling booth during the Tripura municipal polls.
The opposition Trinamool Congress and CPI(M) in the state told a bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant and Vikram Nath that since the polling started in the morning, its candidates and supporters have not been allegedly allowed to cast their votes and there is a serious breach of law and order.
The bench directed the DGP and Tripura Home Secretary to immediately review the security arrangements during the municipal polls and make requisition to MHA for additional CAPF, if required.
Each company of CAPF has 100 troops.
It directed the Tripura State Election Commissioner (SEC), DGP and home secretary to ensure polling booths are manned by sufficient CAPF personnel to ensure free and fair elections and every polling official can take help of those personnel, if any exigency arises.
The bench noted that since the state government has submitted before the high court that there is no coverage of CCTV cameras in polling booths, it is allowing unhindered access of print and electronic media during the civic polls.
It clarified that CAPF personnel will remain deployed in securing the ballot boxes till counting of votes on November 28.
On November 23, the top court had refused the TMC's plea for postponing of municipal elections in Tripura and said it is an extreme recourse and last resort to do in a democracy and passed a slew of directions to the state police to ensure free and fair elections.
The top court was hearing a plea of TMC and intervention application of CPI (M) seeking direction to the Tripura government and other officials for ensuring free and fair elections in the Municipal polls.
Polling began in the morning at 770 booths of Tripura civic polls and the counting of votes will be held on November 28.
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Surat LS candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination form was rejected suspended from Congress
Ahmedabad, Apr 25: The Gujarat Congress on Friday suspended from the party for six years its Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to the BJP's Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
"To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," the Congress disciplinary committee headed by Balu Patel said.
"People of Surat and party workers have become very angry due to your action and are expressing their anger in different ways. The Congress party has decided to suspend you for six years from the party," the press note said.
Kumbhani's nomination form was rejected on April 21 after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on the document was not theirs.
The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress' substitute candidate from Surat, was also invalidated on the same grounds.
In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the three nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.
Kumbhani, a former corporator from Surat, had unsuccessfully fought the 2022 Assembly polls from Kamrej there.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency on April 22 after all other nominees, including one from BSP, withdrew from the fray one by one on the last day of withdrawing papers.
