M A I N   N E W S

EC orders registration of case
against suspended SDM
Deepkamal Kaur
Tribune News Service

Kapurthala, September 30
The Election Commission of India today ordered the District Election Officer-cum-Deputy Commissioner of Kapurthala, Mr Rakesh Kumar Verma, to get a case registered against the suspended SDM, Mr Dilraj Singh Sandhawalia, under the Representation of Peoples Act 1950.

In a communique to the DC, the Election Commission has stated that the case be registered immediately and the office be informed about the same on or before October 1. A copy of the order has been forwarded to the SSP, Mr S.K. Asthana, for taking suitable action.

The SSP confirmed that he had received an order in this regard from the DC at 5 pm today. He said that he had been ordered to register the case immediately against the SDM, who was earlier deputed the Electoral Registration Officer for the Kapurthala Assembly election.

The Election Commission had ordered the transfer of Mr Sandhawalia to Khadoor Sahib on September 27. On the same day, the commission had passed on the charge to Mr Jaipal Singh, SDM of Ajnala. The next day, Mr Sandhawalia was suspended on the orders of the EC and today the commission passed orders pertaining to the registration of a case against him.

The orders have reportedly come in the wake of the recent complaint made by the SAD President, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, who had alleged large-scale bungling in enrolment of fresh voters and deletion of existing voters. He had also alleged that bogus applications were being received by the office of the Electoral Registration Officer wherein the house numbers, father’s names and husband’s names of the complainants were missing. He had also pointed out that some of the factories that had been closed since long had hundreds of fresh voter applicants.