Beas assembly constituency panches want polling before Feb 27

Chandigarh, Feb 12 (UNI) A delegation of sarpanches and panches today appealed to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) to hold the Beas assembly constituency polls before February 27, the day when counting of votes will be taken up in 116 of the 117 segments and the Amrisar Parliamentary constituency.

''The election in Beas can only be free and fair, if the polls are held before the declaration of results in other constituencies'', a written representation forwarded by some sarpanches and panches of Beas constituency to the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sunderam Krishan stated.

The election to this constituency was postponed to March 11 by the Election Commission on grounds that the state government and the police had failed to provide a 'condusive atmosphere for the conduct of a free and fair poll'. The constituency witnessed a clash between Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Congress workers on January 29, in which a SAD worker was killed.

Major (retd) Rajinder Singh Virk, who led the delegation, told mediapersons here that announcement of the election results would have an ''impact on the outcome of the poll in Beas''. Under such circumstances the poll on March 11, cannot be ''free and fair'', he added.

In the representation, the delegation favoured that the polling in Beas should be held on February 24, alongwith the Valtoha constituency, where election was postponed due to the death of a CPI candidate following an accident.

The CEO, while accepting the representation, assured the delegation that he would forward it to the CEC with his comments.

UNI