AIZAWL — The Election Commission yet to take any decision on an appeal by all Mizoram political parties, church bodies, NGOs, civil society organisations and many individuals to reschedule the vote counting date of December 3 as Sundays are sacred for Christians and services are held in all towns and villages on that day.
A senior Mizoram Election Department official on Friday said that they have yet to get any communication from the EC about rescheduling of the counting date.
"We have forwarded the letters, memoranda and appeal of the political parties, church bodies, NGOs and CSOs to the ECI. They have been demanding to change the counting date of December 3," the official said.
After the announcement of the November 7 election schedule for the 40-member Mizoram assembly by the EC on October 9, all ruling and opposition parties, church bodies, NGOs, CSOs and many individuals jointly and separately several times requested the EC to change the counting date.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]The Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee, an apex body of major churches, Mizoram People's Forum, a church-sponsored poll watchdog, and the influential Young Mizo Association also wrote many letters to the EC through the state Chief Electoral Officer Madhup Vyas requesting it to reschedule the counting date.
According to the 2011 Census, around 87 per cent of Mizoram populations are Christian.
A leader of the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) said that the EC has rescheduled the polling date in Rajasthan but remained silent to pleas to change the counting date in Mizoram.
After considering the representations from various political parties and social organisations for changing the polling date in Rajasthan in view of large scale wedding and social engagements on that day (November 23), the Election Commission changed the date of polling to November 25.
Social activist Lalbiakthanga, 65, on polling day on November 7 staged a day-long hunger strike in Aizawl against the EC's "silence" over the demand for rescheduling the day of the counting of votes. He did not cast his vote to register the protest.
Lalbiakthanga chose the polling day to stage his protest in front of 'Vanapa Hall', a government-owned auditorium in the heart of Aizawl. Lalbiakthanga, is popularly known as the "walkathon man" as he had travelled on foot hundreds of kilometres several times to raise awareness on various social issues.