The state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) has ordered restrictions on the use of motorcycles, two days before each phase of the West Bengal Assembly polls on April 23 and 29, to prevent voter intimidation and incitement.
In an order addressed to district election officials (DEOs), police commissioners and supervisors, the CEO said motorcycle rallies are strictly prohibited without exceptions. Night riding is banned between 6pm and 6am, with exceptions for medical emergencies or family events. Pail rides will be prohibited between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., with exceptions for medical emergencies, family functions and essential requirements such as dropping off or picking up children from school.
On polling days, family backseat rides are permitted between 6am and 6pm for voting and other essential requirements. Anyone requiring an exemption from restrictions must obtain written permission from their local police station.
The order indicated that motorcycles with multiple passengers, or groups of motorcycles, are deployed as tools of intimidation and disruption during elections.
An official in the Chief Executive’s Office said that political parties, at times, use motorcycles to ferry cash or liquor through narrow lanes and bylanes that normally avoid four-wheel-drive-focused checkpoints on main roads. “The restrictions are intended to eliminate the channel of voter inducement and ensure a violence-free voting environment…”
This has created uncertainty about its applicability to app-based delivery staff, many of whom rely on motorcycles for their livelihoods and work through the night. The directive does not specifically mention this category of riders.
The order directed DEOs and senior police officers to disseminate the restrictions through print and electronic media, social media and publicity mechanisms at the district and block levels, and coordinate for strict implementation and monitoring. “Any violation that may lead to intimidation or disruption of the free and fair electoral process will not be tolerated,” the order read.
