Kolkata (SunstarTV Bureau): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee cancelled campaign in Kolkata tweeted Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Derek O’ Brien on Sunday. Meanwhile, on April 26, Chief Minister to hold a symbolic meeting on the last day of campaigning in the state capital, Biren tweeted.
“Mamata Banerjee will NOT campaign in Kolkata anymore. Only one ‘symbolic’ meeting on the last day of campaigning in the city on April 26. Slashes time for all her election rallies in all districts. Restricted to just 30 minutes,” the Rajya Sabha member said on Twitter.
West Bengal has seen a sudden spike in COVID-19 cases. The number of cases soared to 6,59,927 as the state registered its highest single-day spike of 8,419 fresh infections on Sunday, the state health department informed.
The state is also in the middle of a tightly fought Assembly election, with massive rallies and road shows being organised by political parties sides, thereby, ignoring the pandemic protocol.
Amid the spike in COVID-19 cases in Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday said her party would organise small meetings in Kolkata and she would give short speeches in rallies in districts where polling would be held in the remaining three phases.
The party had last week requested the Election Commission (EC) to club the remaining phases of the assembly elections into one in view of the intensifying COVID-19 situation.
The EC has now decided to curtail the timing of the campaign for the remaining phases of the election and has extended the silence period to 72 hours for each phase. In its order, the EC has said that no rallies, public meetings, street plays, nukkad sabhas, will be allowed on any day during the days of the campaign between 7 pm and 10 am.
(With inputs from PTI)
