A delegation from the West Bengal unit of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) appealed to the Election Commission of India (ECI) for the upcoming state Assembly elections to be conducted in a single phase. Led by Mohd Salim, the party’s Politburo member and state secretary, the delegation met with the full Bench of the Commission, headed by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, who was visiting West Bengal for a review.
The delegation emphasized the need for single-phase or at most two-phase polling, expressing concerns over the Special Intensive Revision process that they felt was adversarial to common voters. They urged the ECI to uphold its constitutional integrity and questioned the necessity for such a contentious revision exercise.
In a separate meeting, a delegation from the West Bengal unit of the Congress also engaged with the ECI’s full Bench. The Congress representatives stressed the importance of ensuring free and fair elections, highlighting the need for robust security measures to prevent past incidents of violence, rigging, and voter intimidation. While they did not specify the preferred number of phases for polling, their primary focus was on enhancing security during the electoral process.
