TMC flays state election commission for fixing July 29 for counting vote

KOLKATA: Ruling Trinamool Congress on Saturday came down heavily on the state election commissioner Mira Pandey for fixing July 29 as the date for counting of votes of the five-phase panchayat elections in West Bengal. Not only the ruling party criticised Pandey, Trinamool Congress boycotted on Saturday an all-party meeting convened by her at the state election commission office.

"The election commissioner had announced the counting date on her own and unilaterally without holding any talks with the political parties. Her attitude is discourteous. We had informed her on Friday about our inability to attend her meeting as she had already decided the date for counting of votes on July 29," senior Trinamool Congress leader and West Bengal industry minister Partha Chatterjee told ET on Saturday.

The all-party meeting was, however, held without the ruling Trinamool Congress. The opposition CPIM, Congress, BJP and all the partners of the Left Front had attended the meeting during the day. The five-phase panchayat elections will be held on July 11, 15, 19, 22 and 25. Chatterjee, however, said that they will go by the Supreme Court’s order for holding the five-phase polls. "I also appeal to the people to hold the vote peacefully," he said.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee also criticised Pandey without naming her. At a Trinamool Congress rally at Jainagar under South 24-Parganas district on Saturday, the chief minister said that "some organisations are acting whimsically and taking unilateral decisions. We will take revenge of it and of course democratically. The people of our state will give a befitting reply to this attitude by such organisations by defeating the opposition parties which are also conniving with some organisations to frustrate the panchayat elections."