Accepting the demand raised by Punjab’s almost all political parties to defer the polling date to avoid clash with Guru Ravidas Jayanti, the Election Commission of India on Monday rescheduled the state’s assembly polls to February 20.
The counting day for the Punjab polls would remain the same, which is March 10.
Sharing the ECI’s decision, Punjab’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Dr S Karuna Raju said that as per the re-schedule issued by the ECI, the notification for polls will be issued on January 25 and the candidates would start filing nominations from the same day.
The last date of filing nomination papers would be February 1, while the scrutiny of nominations would now be done on February 2, 2022. The date of withdrawal of candidature has been fixed on February 4, and the date for polling has been fixed on February 20, whereas, counting will be done on March 10, he added.
The ECI’s press statement stated that the Commission has received several representations from the State Government, political parties and other organizations drawing attention regarding movement of a large number of devotees from Punjab to Varanasi for participation in Sri Guru Ravidas Ji Jayanti celebrations, which is observed on February 16, 2022.
“They have also brought to the notice that a large number of devotees start moving for Varanasi around a week before the day of celebration and keeping the poll day on February 14, 2022, will deprive a large number of electors from voting. In view of this, they have requested to shift the poll date a few days after February 16. The Commission has also taken inputs from the State Government and Chief Electoral Officer, Punjab in this regard,” it added.
“After considering these new facts emerging out of these representations, inputs from the State Government and Chief Electoral Officer, past precedence and all facts and circumstances in the matter, now Commission has decided to reschedule the General Elections to Legislative Assembly of Punjab,” it stated.
Polling in Punjab was earlier scheduled for February 14. The state’s political parties, including Congress led by Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), among others, had pointed it to the poll panel that many voters could miss the polling if it were held just two days before Guru Ravidas Jayanti, which falls on February 16.
DEVOTEES LIKELY TO LEAVE FOR UP FROM FEB 13
Guru Ravidas Jayanti is a festival that is popular among the Dalit community, which makes up around 32 percent of Punjab’s electorate at the coming elections. This year, on February 16, Guru Ravidas’ 645th birth anniversary will be celebrated, and lakhs of people from the state are expected to visit his birthplace Govardhanpur, in Banaras of Uttar Pradesh. It is expected that devotees from Punjab will start leaving Punjab by special trains on February 13-14, and returning after February 16.
WHO RAISED THE DEMAND
BSP was the first political party in Punjab to raise the demand of postponing the polling date. BSP’s Punjab unit president Jasbir Singh Garhi had suggested that the polling date should be postponed to February 20. After this, Punjab Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi wrote a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner requesting to postpone the election. Soon, BJP, Capt Amarinder Singh's Punjab Lok Congress, and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa's Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt) also wrote to the ECI demanding postponement of the elections. On Monday, AAP also raised the same demand.
DALIT COMMUNITY ALSO STAGED PROTESTS
Punjab’s Doaba region, especially Jalandhar, has the highest number of devotees of Guru Ravidas, who also opposed the date of the voting. The members of Guru Ravidas Tiger Force block the main highway at PAP Chowk in Jalandhar on Monday demanding postponement of Punjab elections by a week in view of Guru Ravidass Jayanti programme.
PUNJAB'S POLITICAL PARTIES WELCOME DECISION
Punjab politicians, including Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal, among others on Monday expressed happiness at the Election Commission of India (ECI)'s decision to postpone the Punjab Assembly elections.
Chief Minister Channi, who had written a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra on January 13 urging him to postpone the elections in Punjab for six days as a huge number of devotees belonging to the Scheduled Caste community would go to Varanasi to pay obeisance to Guru Ravidas Jayanti from February 10 to 16, said: “I am thankful to ECI that they accepted the request and extended the poll date.”
Welcoming the decision, Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu said: “When a huge number of people make a demand which is related to their religion and the Election Commission of India listens to them, it becomes a decision that respects and honours the voice of the people.”
“Today, ECI has postponed the Punjab polls to February 20. All the parties in Punjab requested the commission to postpone the polls here because many people from the SC community from the state are likely to visit Varanasi in view of Guru Ravidas birth anniversary on February 16,” said SAD chief Sukhbir Badal, adding, “We are happy that ECI took this decision and postponed the elections here”.
SAD senior leader Daljit Singh Cheema, also welcoming the decision, said: “I thank the ECI for this decision because they have taken into consideration the religious beliefs of people.”
BJP leader Anil Sarin said that all the parties in Punjab have written to ECI about postponing of polls here. “We have written to ECI for postponing the Punjab polls. We welcome the decision. We are thankful that they understood the sentiments of people and considered our request,” he said.
Sarin said that it was true that “it will give us more time for campaigning in the state for polls, but considering the religious beliefs of devotees was more important”.
Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab unit president Bhagwant Mann also welcomed the decision saying that it was necessary out of the respect for the sentiments of the people of Punjab and to protect their right to vote in the upcoming Punjab Legislative Assembly elections.