ELECTION

Election Commission's 'yes' to Bangshi's candidature

COOCH BEHAR, April 1: The top leader of the 'greater Cooch Behar' movement, Mr Bangshi Badan Barman is getting ready to fight the poll battle from inside the Cooch Behar District Correctional Home.

President of the Greater Cooch Behar Democratic Party (GCDP) Mr Ashutosh Barma claimed that Mr Barma obtained the required permission from the Election Commission against his prayer that he submitted sometime ago.

The GCDP president said they were preparing to submit the nomination of Mr Barman as the candidate of the GCDP in Cooch Behar Parliamentary constituency within a day or two.

As an undertrial, Mr Barma is staying behind the bars since his surrender to the court on 25 May 2006 in connection with a large-scale violence that occurred in Cooch Behar on 20 September 2005. Seven cases are running against him and his associates.

Meanwhile, the GCDP is trying to bail out their leader from the jail. His presence is very much needed during the canvassing to woo the people to vote for him. Legal initiatives are being taken to get the bail order from the High Court, GCDP sources said. The GCDP has also kept ready another person for the candidature if any difficulty arises over the candidature of Mr Bangshi Badan Barman. The second man is the GCDP's treasurer, Mr Ajit Kumar Barman.

For the electioneering the GCDP will use recorded speeches of Mr Bangshi Badan Barman. Audio compact discs (CD) will be used in rural areas to spread the message of the party. If Mr Barman fails to get released on bail his speech may be recorded inside the jail. In case of any difficulty in obtaining permission for doing it, CDs will be made using his old speeches. These will be circulated everywhere, the GCDP president said. Rickshaw vans fitted with large size photographs and cutouts of the candidate will be pressed into campaign alongwith pre-recorded speech. The aim of such campaign will not only be confined in seeking votes but it will also highlight the main demand of the party – formation of a separate Greater Cooch Behar state, GCDP sources said. (PHOTO : Mr Bangshi Badan Barman addresses at a gathering.- A file photograph.)