BENGALURU: With questions being raised over the BS Yediyurappa Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, with just a fortnight to go for the bypolls, Chief Electoral Officer Sanjiv Kumar has put the matter to rest saying there was nothing wrong with that. Speaking to TNIE, he said, “It would be a cause for concern, if they make any announcements that can influence the outcome of the elections By itself, holding the cabinet meeting is okay, since governance has to go on.’’
Asked about the opinion of legal experts that the disqualified MLAs could have contested the bypoll without having to approach the Supreme Court as the Representation of People’s Act does not recognise the disqualification by the Speaker, Sanjiv Kumar said, “Now that they have an order, it becomes easier.’’
With over 37 lakh voters in 15 constituencies, the results of the bypoll could impact the stability of the present government itself. Going by the size of the electorate, it is bigger than the assembly polls of neighbouring Goa or states like Tripura, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur and other smaller states.
Asked about the State Election Commission’s readiness to hold elections, Sanjiv Kumar, who completes 24 months as CEO, said during his tenure, there have been some election or the other continuously. “There was the Karnataka Assembly election, then the General Elections of 2019. Prior to that, there were byelections to three parliamentary seats and two Assembly seats. Now we have the bypolls to 15 seats. So we have always been ready.’’
Regarding the 46 raids conducted by the Income Tax authorities on leaders of opposition parties during the Assembly and Parliamentary elections, he said, “Whenever there are elections, any withdrawal of over Rs 10 lakh comes to the notice of both the I-T department and Election Commission. The raids were not without reason and it is not that the officials returned without anything.’’