Bengal panchayat polls: State poll panel challenges Calcutta HC order allowing online nominations
The West Bengal State Election Commission told the Supreme Court that the High Court’s ruling would cause ‘irreparable loss and injury’.
The West Bengal State Election Commission on Wednesday moved the Supreme Court challenging the Calcutta High Court’s order allowing the nominations of candidates who had e-mailed their papers, PTI reported.
The poll panel told the top court that it would “suffer irreparable loss and injury” that cannot be compensated if the verdict was not stayed. The High Court had on Tuesday directed the state election commission to accept valid nominations of Communist Party of India (Marxist) candidates who had filed their papers electronically before 3 pm on April 23. The CPI(M) has accused the ruling Trinamool Congress of preventing its candidates from filing their nominations in person. It has submitted a list of over 800 candidates.
Meanwhile, the CPI(M) and the Bharatiya Janata Party filed a caveat before the Supreme Court urging it not to pass an ex-parte order on the matter.
The elections have been mired in controversy, with reports of clashes between BJP and Trinamool Congress workers. Other Opposition parties have also accused the ruling party of preventing their candidates from filing nomination papers.