MV Jayarajanun‘veil’s row

Kannur: Women coming with their face covered with niqab (veil) should not be allowed to vote, according to CPM Kannur district secretary M.V. Jayarajan.

Mr Jayarajan urged the polling officials to direct such women to remove the veil even while standing in the queue. "The face of the voter should be clearly visible on the CCTV camera of the polling booth," he said here on Saturday.

"Will the election commission be ready to conduct the polling in such a systematic way?" he asked. If the elections were conducted in that manner , the LDF would have won all the seats being won by the UDF," he added.

His statement comes at a time when the state has been discussing the propriety of wearing niqab in public places. The MES group of educational institutions has decided not to allow the girl students to wear the niqab in schools, saying that those who want to study should keep their face visible.  Jayarajan told reporters in Kochi that revealing face of the voter before casting vote to polling agents and officials is mandatory. The CPM leader said he had submitted two representations to Chief Electoral Officer on May 16 and 17 on this issue to ensure free and fair polling. The CEO in his reply, however, remained silent on the subject.

 He said during the polling held on April 23 nearly 50 fake votes were cast in a booth in Pambarathy and 100 fake votes in two booths in Puthiyangadi by persons with face-covering veils.

Meanwhile, CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan on Saturday came out against M. V. Jayarajan for his statement against Muslim women casting votes wearing niqab.

"There is no fault in Muslim women coming for voting wearing niqab", Mr. Balakrishnan said, adding that they have right to come to the polling booth in the dress. Wearing niqab is part of their dress code, but they should remove the veil if the booth agents insist on lifting veil to identify the person", he added.

Repolling under pressure: Kodiyeri
The Election Commission had announced the dates for re-polling in three more booths in Kannur and Kasargod Lok Sabha constituencies in a hurry under pressure from some quarters, saidi Mr Balakrishnan. He told reporters in Kanuur that political parities did not get sufficient time for a proper election campaign. The EC is acting in tune with the diktats of some other forces, he alleged.