HP BSP supports EC's decision not to reschedule polling dates

Una, Oct 17 (UNI) BSP's Himachal Pradesh secretary and former minister Vijay Joshi has hailed the Election Commission's decision not to reschedule state polling dates.

Addressing newspersons here last evening, he accused Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh of double standards and of playing politics of convenience.

Countering the Chief Minister's statement that the decision had curtailed the term of tribal legislators, Mr Joshi said '' Mr Singh should remember January 23, 1985 when he dissolved the Assembly 27 months in advance to take benefit of the ''pro-Congress wave'' after former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's assasination.

Again, he said it was the same Chief Minister who had announced polls, one year in advance by dissolving the House on December 23, 1997.

He questioned whether the terms of the legislators during these two terms were not curtailed and whether they were not elected democratically.

As regards the Congress plea that some of the higher reaches of the state would be inaccessible in December, the BSP leader reminded that panchayat elections were also held in the month of December after every five years.

UNI