Will polls in five states be delayed due to Covid? Election Commission to decide today

Will the upcoming Assembly elections in five states be postponed due the Covid crisis? The Election Commission is likely to take a call today.

Days after the Allahabad High Court requested the poll panel to immediately postpone the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh for one to two months amid rising cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, the panel will meet senior officials of the ministry of health and family welfare, including secretary Rajesh Bhushan today, ANI has reported.

Last Thursday, the high court also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the ECI to immediately ban rallies and public meetings of political parties in the state.

Assembly elections are due in five states including Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Goa and Punjab in February-March.

The Election Commission had earlier directed the poll-bound states to “exponentially ramp up vaccination”, especially in the “low coverage districts”.

The Union health ministry has also sent multidisciplinary teams to Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. The teams will assess the situation, suggest remedial actions and submit a report every evening.

Meanwhile, the number the Omicron variant cases detected across India on Sunday crossed the 500-mark. More than 150 of these cases have already recovered.

Also Watch: UP Election 2022: Allahabad High Court urges PM Modi & EC to stop rallies, delay polls due to Omicron