Election Commission Getting a hard time Secular Forces Should behave responsively: Basu Contradictions & Confusions BJP style

Political Correspondent

Election Commission is in a Soup. Cutting short his US visit even though the CEC rushed in soon after the house was dissolved, the EC hasn't been able to make up its minds on polls yet. Not that it's easy though. Just in the past week it has met over 30 political outfits and perhaps got even more opinions. Hence searching the suitable date has got more complicated than suitable boy...

Nagging political uncertainty  shifted the focus on Nirvachan Sadan regarding the question of election soon after the Lok Sabha was dissolved last week and Vajpayee asked to continue as care-taker Prime MInister. The ruling coalition in its dissolvation note asked for election in June or whenevr its early, soon its all partners endorsed it. In the opposition the Left was first to go for September citing prepartion of electoral rolls, monsoons as teh cause and later Congress and other parties to supported this view, Ultimately the opinion has been divided on June-september.

Meanwhile the BJP and its rumour spreading society(RSS) has it again, this time on dates even, they had resorted to whisper campaiging that President has asked for June elections, but ultimetely The Presidents house has had to issue a denial to scoff this rumours

The Election Commission concluded its party to party meetings this Friday and has called fpr an all party meeting on this isue on Monday. Given the past experience, the Election Commission would require a minimum time-frame of two-to-three months to conduct parliamentary elections. And with eight state assemblies due to go to the polls between the last quarter of this year and the first quarter of next year, perhaps a simultaneous poll around October-November would make better sense - both economically and administratively. But the Lok Sabha has to reconvene by 21st October so it has to be anything not later than September.

This time around, fresh assemblies are to be formed in Karnataka (by December 25, 1999), Sikkim (by December 28, 1999), Andhra Pradesh (by January 1, 2000), Maharashtra (by March 21, 2,000) Manipur (by March 21, 2,000), Orissa (by March 22, 2,000) Arunachal (by March 23, 2,000) and Bihar (by April 4, 2,000.) The term of Goa assembly was to expire on 12 January next year, but as it is under governor's rule there is no set time-frame. As  these states have a total of nearly 200 Lok Sabha seats many parties have demanded that election be held simultaneously but all ruling parties in states have opposed teh idea, so it it is not certain whether EC can force down an election.