EC to send observer to monitor situation in WB

The decision of the EC comes six days after the chief election commissioner S Y Quraishi expressed concern on the spurt in political violence in the state.

State Home secretary G D Gautama said here on Thursday that as part of its assessment exercise, the Commission would send an observer to monitor the law and order situation.

However, the date of the visit is not intimated to the state government yet.

Such information, he said, would be conveyed to the state through the Chief Electoral Officer.

Meanwhile, state`s Chief Electoral Officer Sunil Gupta said that a six-member Special EC Observer team would arrive here on Monday.

Gautama said that the state government, during its meeting with the full bench of the Election Commission, sought deployment of 800 companies of central forces during the Assembly election in West Bengal.

He said the state would need some of these central forces, a couple of months before the polling so that the personnel could be used for confidence building exercise and creating awareness of the areas among the forces.

The Home secretary said that the state required 600 companies of central forces in 2006 Assembly elections.