Abhishek Singhvi urges political leaders, EC to find solution for rallies amid COVID fears

Congress MP Abhishek Singhvi on Friday expressed his concerns over COVID-19 and massive political rallies happening for the upcoming polls. According to the Congress leader, 'lacs together in multiple rallies seriously jeopardises their health, common man’s well being, while netas (politicians) speak from a distance & have protection'. He further urged all the political leaders to find a 'solution' along with Election Commissioner. 

Abhishek Singhvi on COVID and political rallies:

Plea in SC for virtual rallies during polls & COVID-19 norms enforcement

Amid the Omicron scare, a PIL was filed in the Supreme Court last week seeking the strict enforcement of COVID-19 norms during the 2022 Assembly elections. Contending that the novel coronavirus cases are expected to rise sharply as Omicron has replaced Delta as the dominant variant, petitioner Vishal Tiwari argued that the processions and public gatherings pertaining to the upcoming polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur need to be restricted. Therefore, he also asked the SC to direct the Election Commission of India to direct all parties to conduct its election campaign via the digital medium. 

Election Commissioner on COVID-19 scare and upcoming polls

On December 30, Thursday, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sushil Chandra said that the EC will take into consideration the Allahabad High Court's order before announcing the dates for the UP polls. He was responding to a question after the completion of the EC's visit to the state to review the poll preparedness. In an order dated December 23, the HC had requested the EC to stop all rallies and delay the UP polls for a couple of months owing to the COVID-19 crisis. While refraining from commenting on whether the election will be delayed, he revealed that all parties wanted the polls to take place on time.

Weighing in on the possibility of deferring polls, CEC Sushil Chandra remarked, "The Election Commission will fulfill its constitutional mandate. We will take into consideration all aspects whether it is the increasing COVID-19 cases or the huge rallies. Only then, we will announce the elections."

He elaborated, "The mandate of the Election Commission starts when we impose the MCC. Before that, it is the responsibility of the district administration and action will be taken under the SDMA. The moment when we announce elections and MCC comes into play, we will consider whatever you say (on restricting poll rallies)."