Early reports indicate that the dates for the assembly election — in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Assam — will be fixed after February 25. Sources had pointed out that the first batch of the central forces for electoral purposes would arrive in Kerala on February 25.
During a meeting with the election commission, Kerala had reportedly asked to increase the number of companies from 120 companies last time to 150 companies. The first 30 of the lot would arrive on the aforementioned date, including officers from CRPF, ITBP, and CISF. The same was suddenly conveyed to Kerala police chief Lokanath Behera and Armed Police Battalion Commandant ADGP Padmakumar — who is also in charge of the central forces — by the three-member committee of the Election Commission.
Meanwhile, on February 26, the LDF’s ‘Vikasana Yatra’ will culminate in Thiruvananthapuram and UDF’s ‘Aishwarya Kerala Yatra’ will reach the state capital after its 23-day-long journey across the state on February 22. On the other hand, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will flag-off the Kerala unit’s ‘Vijaya Yatra’ on February 22 and it will reportedly end in the first week of March.
Meanwhile, fake news has been spreading regarding the dates of the elections in some of the states. A few days ago, WhatsApp and social media were buzzing with the “dates” for the West Bengal and Assam elections. While the information regarding the latter was limited to a statement that the elections dates were announced, creative enthusiasts had created a fake notice with dates to “announce” West Bengal dates. The fake information claimed that the election to the state would be held from April 11 till May 19. However, the fact-checkers had quickly dismissed the claims before they could do any damage.
