NEW DELHI: Filing of nominations for the parliamentary and the assembly polls began all over the country Friday April 19 except Jammu and Kashmir while the election commission announced that the polls in Punjab and Assam would be held at a later date.
The nomination process began in the two sensitive states along with the rest of the country at 1100 hours with the president Mr R Venkataraman and the governors issuing notifications but reports from Chandigarh and Guwahati Friday said no nomination was filed in both states on the first day. Most of the nominations filed in other states were by independents according to reports received here Nominations for assembly polls of began in Uttar Pradesh Haryana West Bengal Tamil Nadu Kerala and Pondicherry. Punjab and Assam would also have assembly polls.
Chief election commissioner T N Seshan said here Friday evening that the two states would not go to polls with the rest of the country and fresh dates for the Lok Sabha and assembly elections these states would be announced as soon as possible.
His statement was an amendment of an announcement by the election commission earlier in the day that elections in the two states would take place along with the polls in other states.
The decision to defer the poll schedule in the two states was taken following requests from the federal home secretary R K Bhargave that more time be given for mobilisation of security forces to ensure protection to candidates.
Seshan told newsmen here that the governor of Punjab Gen (Retd) OP Malhotra had suggested holding of polls in the state around June 20 instead of May 20. The CEC also said the home secretary in his letter conveyed the suggestion of the Assam governor Loknath Misra that the state should have a two day poll on May 31 and June 3.
Nominations for the nine assembly by-elections in Andhra Pradesh Gujarat Mizoram also began.
The Congress (I) has announced it would keep out of the Punjab polls. The party spokesman Mr Pranab Mukherjee said his party was in touch with other major political parties for coordinated action on this issue.
The CPI (M) also has announced its decision to keep off the polls in Punjab saying the administration there would not be able to provide security to political workers in the state. The BJP described the decision to hold polls in Assam highly improper.
Article extracted from this publication >> April 26, 1991
