New Delhi: Amid the looming threats of the new covid variant, Omicron, the Election Commission will meet Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Monday to discuss the prevailing COVID19 situation and upcoming Assembly elections in five states. According to a India TV report, the commission is likely to seek updates from Bhushan on the COVID-19 situation and the emergence of Omicron, the new coronavirus variant.
Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra yesterday told reporters: “I will be visiting UP next week. An appropriate decision as required by the situation will be taken after we review it.”
To recall, the Allahabad High Court earlier had requested the Election Commission to postpone the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly elections in view of the increasing spread of Omicron variant of Covid-19. The High Court has requested that the electoral process in the state should be delayed by at least a month or two.
A Bench of Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav, while allowing the bail application of a petitioner in a case, said the number of patients infected with Omicron are increasing and there is a possibility of a third wave.
When asked about the observation, CEC Sushil Chandra had said in Dehradun on Friday that the EC will be visiting Uttar Pradesh next week and “an appropriate decision as required by the situation will be taken after we review it”. The commission has already visited Punjab, Goa and Uttarakhand as part of its pre-poll stock-taking exercise.
The terms of Goa, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Manipur legislative assemblies are ending on different dates in March next year while the assembly’s term in Uttar Pradesh will end in May. The Election Commission (EC) is expected to announce election dates next month.
