Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Agartala: Tripura State Election Commissioner P K Chakraborty appointed 23 election observers on November 6 to monitor the state's urban local body elections. The commission has extra officials on standby. These observers hit the field Friday evening and stay through the nomination paper scrutiny this Saturday.
Observers will watch polling setups, visit police stations, and check in with Returning Officers regularly. The mandate requires them to file five reports total, tracking everything from candidate list finalization to the final vote count. They will flag violence or irregularities. Chakraborty labeled these monitors the "eyes and ears of the Election Commission." They serve as supervisors and advisors rather than direct commanders of local election staff.
Reports of opposition candidates facing obstruction during filing triggered pushback from the SEC. While protesters gheraoed the commission office recently, Chakraborty confirmed that no official reports of interference reached the authorities. The commission maintains constant contact with District Municipal Election Officers and officials in all four subdivisions to keep the process on track.
Chakraborty dismissed the claims of bias or security failures. He stated, "I have personally interacted with all the Returning Officers of the concerned municipal bodies, and they are not aware of any such complaints. They have not been intimated about any obstruction." Security forces now guard offices and transit routes for candidates. The state promises a clear path for all parties to register for the upcoming polls.
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