The Election Commission of India has prohibited all victory gatherings on the day of – or even after – the counting of votes (May 2) cast in the five states in recent weeks despite a COVID-19 boom. Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam, and Puducherry have scheduled legislative assembly elections in eight phases, starting March 27 and ending April 29.
“No more than two persons shall be permitted to assist the winning candidate or his/her approved agent in receiving the certificate of election from the Returning Officer concerned,” said an Election Commission notice today.
In the midst of a second outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the poll panel developed a guideline for contesting parties and representatives to implement in order to limit the spread of pathogens. The laws, though, were often broken by most political parties and their candidates, with massive protests and marches throwing social distancing to the wind.
Meanwhile, the ferocity of the second wave has increased, leading to speculation that the polls have been Covid catalysts. Today marked India’s sixth consecutive day with over three lakh cases and 2,771 deaths, taking the country’s total caseload to over 1.76 crore and fatalities to 1,97,894.
A Madras High Court order issued yesterday accused the election body of “unbridled neglect” and “silence” over political campaigns that violated Covid laws, and said that “at no expense will counting become a stimulus for a further surge.”
During arguments earlier in the day yesterday, the court told the Election Commission: “The organization is solely to blame for the second wave of COVID-19. Your institution should most likely be charged with murder… Were you on another earth during the election rallies?”
It also requested by Friday a timetable for enforcing Covid rules on May 2 – the day of the findings. The High Court stated that without it, the counting could be halted.
