HC tells returning officer to ‘appear on Thursday with CCTV footage’

MP, 13 July 2023, Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday directed the Panchayat Returning Officer of Jangipara Block to appear before the Court on Thursday along with the CCTV footage in connection with a case alleging manipulation of election results.

“To ascertain as to whether the bunch of documents produced in Court today are indeed the valid ballot papers the Court thinks it fit to direct the concerned Panchayat Returning Officer, Jangipara Block to appear before this Court tomorrow i.e. on July 13, 2023 at 2 p.m. along with the CCTV/Video footage. 

The Panchayat Returning Officer shall also produce the list of the Presiding Officers who were present on the date of voting,” the court directed.

The petitioners, contesting candidates of the Panchayat elections 2023, have alleged that at the end of July 11 the supporters of the political party recovered a few empty ballot papers countersigned by the Presiding Officers from and around the counting centre at Jangipara DN High School. 

The matter was heard by Justice Amrita Sinha on Wednesday. A bunch of ballot papers were produced in the court. 

The petitioners suspect that the ballot papers may have been used to manipulate the election result. 

They inter alia pray for a direction for conducting investigation into the acts of collusion, obstruction, violence and manipulation of ballot papers. 

Prayer was made to preserve the CCTV footage of the counting centre as evidence to substantiate the act of violence, collusion and irregularities during the counting process. 

The matter relates to the Furfura Gram Panchayat area in the district of Hooghly https://www.millenniumpost.in/bengal/hc-tells-returning-officer-to-appear-on-thursday-with-cctv-footage-525458