EC extends ban on public rallies in poll-bound states till January 22

However, ECI allowed political parties to hold indoor meetings with a maximum of 300 persons or 50 per cent of the capacity of the hall

The decision was taken based on inputs about the spread of the virus and its new variant Omicron, sources said. Credit: PTI Photo

The Election Commission on Saturday decided to allow the political parties to hold indoor meetings with certain restrictions on a number of participants, even as it decided to extend the ban it had imposed on rallies and roadshows in the five poll-bound states in view of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic till January 22.

The EC allowed the political parties to hold indoor meetings with an attendance of a maximum of 300 people or half the capacity of the auditorium or up to the limit set by the respective State Disaster Management Authorities in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab. Goa and Manipur.

It, however, decided to extend the ban on the physical rallies by the candidates and the political parties till January 22. The ban on roadshows, processions and bike or cycle or vehicle rallies would also continue.

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The commission had banned physical rallies and roadshows for a week when it had announced the schedule of the assembly elections in the five states on January 8 last.

As the ban would have come to its end on Saturday, the Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra and the Election Commissioners, Rajiv Kumar and Anup Chandra Pandey reviewed the Covid-19 situation in the poll-bound states. They held virtual meetings with the senior officials of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. They also had separate meetings with the Chief Secretaries and Health Secretaries of Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. The Chief Electoral Officers of the respective states also participated.

They comprehensively reviewed “present status and projected trends of the Covid-19 pandemic with special focus in the five poll going states”.

The commission reviewed the status of vaccination and the action plan for expeditiously completing vaccination of the eligible population with the first, second and booster doses. They reviewed the progress of vaccination of the frontline workers and the polling personnel, according to a press release issued by the EC.

The EC decided to ask the political parties to ensure compliance with both the measures introduced to contain the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic as well as the Model Code of Conduct at all occasions during the activities connected with elections.

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