Calcutta High Court on Friday adjourned till January 11 hearing on a plea that sought postponement of the January 22 polls to four municipal corporations because of a spike in Covid-19 cases.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava also asked the State Election Commission to file
an affidavit by January 10 stating steps it had taken to ensure that Covid protocol was observed during the poll process.

Earlier, appearing for petitioner Bimal Bhattacharya, advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya had prayed to the court to prevent the SEC from holding the elections in the midst of the “grave Covid situation” in the state.

SEC counsel Jayanta Mitra said the schedule for elections to the municipal corporations — Salt Lake, Chandernagore, Asansol and Siliguri — had already been announced. He also claimed that the commission had taken adequate steps to ensure adherence to Covid protocol during the elections.

The Chief Justice also wanted to know the state government’s role in holding the forthcoming polls. In reply, advocate-general S.N. Mukherji said his government would fully assist the SEC in holding elections.

In a separate case filed by advocate Sabyasachi Chatterjee, the commission has been told to file an affidavit stating its stand on holding polls to the Howrah Municipal Corporation.

Cap on meet footfall
The State Election Commission on Friday limited the attendance for all outdoor meetings for the civic polls by political parties to 250 people, instead of the earlier 500.

The new guidelines will apply to political parties and Independent candidates.

The decision was taken following a spike in Covid cases across the state. The commission also urged district magistrates of four districts to keep a vigil on whether the contestants were adhering to the new directive. The SEC also emphasised the use of digital platforms in the poll campaign.

Additional reporting by Arkamoy Datta Majumdar