Separate line for Muslim voters in Panchayat elections has also been made for convenience of those fasting.
By Zaidul Haque, TwoCircles.net,
Kolkata: West Bengal State Election Commission has allowed time relaxation to the Muslim Vote workers and has made special arrangement for sehri and Iftar inside the polling both area. For the first time in West Bengal State Panchayet Election is being held during Ramzan.
However, although State Election Commissioner issued a notice but most of the polling offices could not arrange for the same, several Muslim organisations alleged. It should be mentioned here that vote workers generally get food and snacks when on duty and since Muslim workers would not have snacks or lunch, as fasting is on, arrangements for Sehri and ifatrs have instead been made.
State Election Commissior Mira Pande claimed that sepcial arrangement for Namaz, sehri and Iftar have been made. She told media persons that nearly 9% of the poll workers currently engaged are Muslims.
Commission needed at least five government workers in every booth, so they have tried to decrease the Muslim workers number during due to the holy month of Ramzan. Commission directed all the district authorities to keep the Muslim workers in reserve bench as much as possible.
First phase of voting was done on 11 July in Purulia, Bankura and West Medinipur district. In these districts Muslim population is not as large.
State election Commission, however, made arrangement for a separate line for Muslim voters for their convenience as fasting has already begun. They assured that the same system will be followed in rest of the phases, when elections in Muslim dominant districts of Malda, Murshidabad, etc would take place.
Second phase of the Panchayat Election will be held on 15 July in Burdwan, East Medinipur and Hooghly distrcit, third phase will be held on 19 July in Howrah, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas, fourth phase would be on 2 July in Nadia, Murshidabad, Malda and Birbhum, and finally in the fifth phase on 25 July elections will be held in Coochbehar, Jalpaiguri, North Dinajpur and South Dinajpur.
Muslim organisations have welcomed the move, but urged the State Election Commission to maintain the same guidelines for the rest of the phases and to direct the respective presiding officers to execute the order.
All India Minority Youth Federation (MYF) rasied complained to the state Election commission office that most of the presiding officer ignored the direction of the Commission regarding time relaxation and Iftar, Sehri arrangement. Secretary of the MYF Muhammad Kamruzzaman alleged that he got information that in the first phase the direction was not properly implemented at several places and urged the election commission to direct the presiding officers for proper implementation.
They have also demanded to arrange for more non-Muslim vote workers in Mursdhidabad, where nearly 70 percent voters are Muslims. Anjuman-e-Islamia of Coochbehar distrcit appealed to the State Election Commission to arrange for a separate hall for Muslim voters.