Change poll date, CPM urges poll commission

MADURAI: The CPM has urged the election commission to consider changing the date of election as it clashes with the festival of Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple. Party state secretary K Balakrishnan alleged here on Tuesday that there were doubts as to whether the polls would be conducted in a free and fair manner as it was being influenced by the BJP. The conduct of the election on April 18 would affect polling in the southern districts as well as

Madurai

, he told reporters.


He said that the fact that it had taken 15 days to arrest the

Pollachi

rape accused was proof that the police were conniving with them. The people had lost confidence in the police and the case should be handed over to the CBCID and the investigations conducted under the supervision of the judiciary. AIADMK’s move to remove a member of the party for his links with the Pollachi rape case was only an eyewash and all those involved should be brought to book, he said.

There were lots of doubts to be cleared right from the Nirmala Devi case to the Pollachi rape case. Many higher authorities and politicians were involved in the Nirmala Devi case and these names would be revealed only if she could depose before the court without fear, he said.