The highest court of West Bengal, the Calcutta High Court, ruled on Thursday that central paramilitary forces should remain deployed in the state for 10 days after the results of the upcoming panchayat elections are announced.
The court made the decision after noting that there was a genuine fear of post-election violence, as there had been similar incidents in 2018 and 2021 after the results of previous panchayat elections were announced.
"The fear of post-poll violence cannot be ignored, given past experience. We are only concerned with the safety of the public, and if such violence occurs, it will affect them. There is a risk of post-poll violence as winning candidates may celebrate," the court said in its order.
The State Election Commission (SEC) told the court that it would not be able to order the continued deployment of the forces after July 12, the date on which the election results will be announced.
"Our jurisdiction will end after the results are announced. As a result, we can only order deployment until July 12. After that, either the court or the central government's nodal officer can make a decision," senior advocate Kishore Datta told the court.
The court accepted the SEC's argument and ordered the continued deployment of the central forces.
Here is a table of the old and new words:
Old word:-New word
Central:-Highest
paramilitary:-security
forces:-forces
should:-ruled
continue:-remain
deployed:-deployed
in West Bengal:-in the state
10 day:-10 days
after declaration:- after the announcement
of results:-of the results
of ipcoming panchayat elections:-of the upcoming panchayat elections
apprehension:-fear
brushed aside:-ignored
public at large:-public
such violence:-such violence
affect:-affect
chances:-risk
winning candidates:-winning candidates
celebrate:-celebrate
nodal officer:-nodal officer
order:-order
