The Calcutta High Court has requested a report from the Election Commission of India regarding the infrastructure conditions in polling booths in West Bengal ahead of the crucial Assembly polls. This request stems from a public interest litigation filed by Samik Bhattacharya, the state President and Rajya Sabha member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, alleging poor infrastructure in several polling booths. The court emphasized the ECI’s responsibility in reviewing and instructing the state government on infrastructure maintenance.
The bench highlighted that a detailed order cannot be issued without hearing the ECI’s stance on the matter and thus sought a report from the commission. The Election Commission is expected to outline the initiatives taken to ensure proper infrastructure maintenance at polling booths in the state. This issue will be revisited in the upcoming week for further deliberation.
The Election Commission mandates minimum infrastructure standards for polling booths across states and Union Territories. However, complaints have surfaced in West Bengal about the lack of maintenance of these facilities, particularly in remote rural areas. In preparation for the Assembly elections, the state Chief Electoral Officer proposed Mackintosh Burn Limited (MBL) as the agency responsible for maintaining infrastructure facilities at polling booths. Initially agreeing to the task, MBL later expressed their inability to proceed, leading to further considerations by the CEO’s office.
