Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel  |  Photo Credit: PTI
New Delhi: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Tuesday sought to allege that the BJP was conspiring to postpone upcoming Assembly elections in five states.
Baghel also raised doubt over the Election Commission’s credibility, saying that the poll body attended a meeting called by PMO.
“Today there are only a few cases of Omicron. Is BJP conspiring to postpone elections? There are many speculations. Election Commission’s credibility as an independent institution is suspicious nowadays as they attended a meeting called by PMO,” he said.
The allegation comes a day after the EC held a meeting with senior officials of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare including Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan and discussed the COVID-19 situation in the country as five states are set to hold polls in less than three-month time.
The EC and Centre’s health officials discussed the rising number of COVID-19 cases across India and the threat posed by the Omicron variant besides vaccine coverage, especially in states where Assembly elections are scheduled to be held next year.
Five states – Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa – will hold Assembly elections in February-March next year.
The surge in cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, which is more transmissible than the Delta strain, has triggered an alarm across the country.
The Delta strain was responsible for the deadly second wave of infections in the country in April-May this year when lakhs of people succumbed to the disease and the healthcare system was pushed to the verge of collapse.