Assembly polls: EC lifts ban on victory processions

Agencies
New Delhi, March 10

The Election Commission of India lifted its ban on victory processions on Thursday.

In a statement, the poll panel said keeping in mind the current status of Covid-19 in these states, it has “decided to relax the guidelines on victory processions during and after the counting and has withdrawn the blanket ban on victory procession”.     

While announcing the poll schedule for Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa, and Punjab, the Election Commission had issued guidelines to regulate various aspects of elections, including victory processions amid the pandemic.

“During the period of elections as the COVID situation improved, the Commission gradually relaxed the norms concerning electioneering in consultation with the Union Health Ministry and state governments,” the statement said.

The relaxation will be subject to existing instructions of state disaster management authorities and preventive measures imposed by concerned district authorities, it added. 

The development came hours after counting began for assembly elections.  Aam Aadmi Party registered a landslide victory in Punjab while the Bharatiya Janata Party won decisive mandates in at least three states—Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, and Uttarakhand—and looks set to emerge as the single largest party in Goa.