Geetha, the head of a flying squad team (FST), has been suspended for being lax in checking the cavalcade of DMK candidate A. Raja at an inter-State checkpoint in the Nilgiris.
Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Satyabrata Sahoo said Ms. Geetha was suspended based on the media reports and a subsequent inquiry conducted by the Returning Officer for the Nilgiris, as also by the Expenditure Observer. He said lapses were found in the performance of election duties by this team and the entire FST team has been replaced.
“The Expenditure Observer also visited the spot and made enquiries. He also viewed the two videos recorded by the Video Surveillance teams. Both the press video as well as the VST videos show casual and superficial checking. The other cars in the cavalcade were not checked at all,” the CEO said.
He said the Election Commission of India has taken a serious note of the soft approach towards a prominent candidate. “All political parties and candidates will be dealt with firmly, if found to be violating the Model Code of Conduct guidelines issued by ECI for a level playing field in ensuring free and fair elections,” he warned.
