District Collector, Shreya P. Singh, chaired a meeting of representatives of political parties at the District Collector on Thursday.
Ms Shreya ordered the parties’ representatives to adhere to the code of conduct and avoid maximum violations. She said, “The model code of conduct would be in place at urban local bodies and in a five km radius of local bodies where elections have been announced.”
She had observed that the rallies were being conducted in religious places and advised that doing the same was a violation of the poll code. She urged all the political parties to carry out rallies and gather only after seeking local authorities’ permission.
In the case of indoor meetings, the poll code only allows 100 members. They were also asked to inform the local police beforehand to be aware of the rallies. Loudspeakers could be used, however, only on permitted vehicles and between 6 am to 8 pm.
Parties should not set up camp near the polling booths to ensure free and fair elections. They were also asked to strictly follow COVID-19 norms such as masking, sanitizing hands and maintaining social distancing.
If any political party is using posters or pamphlets, they must print the name of the publisher/printer as well. On the other hand, Ms Singh asked the local bodies not to provide funds and issue orders for any other new work.
The party representatives were also asked to stay away from providing incentives like cash to woo the voters, and if found guilty, the party will be scrutinized.
Edited By- Mahi Gupta
Published By- Saloni Agarwal
