The Times of India 12.08.2010
Early VMC polls a distinct possibility
VADODARA: An early civic body election seems to be a distinct possibility for Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) being held early this year. Major political parties have already started gearing up for the polls even as political circles are rife with speculation that the elections will be held in the first fortnight of October.
The final electoral rolls for VMC polls were declared on Tuesday giving an indication that the polls could be held anytime now. Officials said that it is a must that the voters’ list be declared before any polls are held. “The election commission can declare the polls on any suitable day now,” said a VMC official.
According to sources, since Navratri festival dates would fall in the middle of October, and Diwali would follow soon after, the best suitable time for the polls would be before the Navratri festivities kick off. “The idea seems to be that of concentrating on Navratri festival to showcase the state after holding the polls,” a senior BJP functionary said.
Insiders, however, said that the early polls in Vadodara, that should have ideally been held sometime in December, were also the part of a move to hold the polls for all the municipal corporations on the same date. “The move seems to have been taken up to avoid the results in one city affecting that of another,” said a source, adding that last year the clean sweep in Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation polls had affected results in all other cities.
The urgency with which civic works are being taken up in the city and being completed are also a fair indication of this possibility. A Congress functionary said that the work was clearly election oriented. “Projects like Ratri Bazaar are being expedited with an eye on the elections,” said the functionary.
