West Bengal elections: Both central, state officers at counting centres, EC tells SC

NEW DELHI: Refuting the allegation of Trinamool Congress that lone cardinal govt employees would beryllium deployed arsenic counting supervisors and assistants, Election Commission connected Saturday told Supreme Court that 1 from cardinal govt and different from authorities govt would beryllium fixed the complaint of 2 posts to support balance, convincing the tribunal that determination was nary request for judicial interference successful the counting process scheduled for May 4.In a peculiar proceeding arsenic counting is aft conscionable 2 days, a seat of Justices P S Narasimha and Joymalya Bagchi dismissed TMC’s petition, which alleged that allowing lone cardinal govt employees astatine the counting tables would undermines the neutrality of the counting process. The seat said EC tin take the counting unit arsenic per its April 13 circular.Senior advocator Dama Seshadri Naidu, appearing for EC, said that the party's apprehension is misplaced and baseless.

He said that if a cardinal govt worker is appointed arsenic counting supervisor past counting adjunct would beryllium a authorities govt worker oregon vice-versa, a signifier followed successful different elections also.Senior advocator Kapil Sibal, appearing for TMC, told SC it was agreeable if employees of some the Centre and authorities are progressive and it should beryllium followed successful existent spirit.

Supreme Court: No extraorder needed, Election Commission to travel circular

The court, thereafter, passed a little bid and brought the contention to an end.

“No further orders are indispensable successful this lawsuit but to grounds the connection of Mr Dama Seshadri Naidu that the Election Commission volition instrumentality the circular dated 13th April, 2026 successful existent missive and spirit. With these clarifications, the peculiar permission petition stands dismissed,” the bid said.TMC had moved SC challenging the further main electoral officer’s determination mandating “at slightest 1 among the counting supervisor and counting adjunct astatine each counting array shall beryllium a cardinal govt/central PSU employee” for the counting of votes.The petition, filed done advocator Sanchit Garga, alleged that the determination was “arbitrary, without jurisdiction, discriminatory, and creating a tenable apprehension of bias, fixed that its main governmental opponent, the BJP, is the ruling enactment (sic) astatine the Centre and frankincense exercises administrative power implicit cardinal govt/PSU employees.”