New Delhi, March 16 (IANS) Congress General Secretary, Organisation, K. C. Venugopal, on Monday criticised the Election Commission of India over the schedule announced for the Kerala Assembly elections, claiming that the time provided between the filing of nominations and the vote is too short, but asserted that his party is fully prepared for the polls.

Speaking to reporters outside Parliament, Venugopal stressed the party has already finalised its strategy and remains confident of victory.

“We are ready and fully prepared. We are going to win the election. Our entire strategy has been finalised, and we are fully geared to achieve victory. We do not have any problem regarding preparedness,” he said.

Referring to the election schedule, he pointed out that the timeline leaves little room for campaigning.

“You can see the pattern of dates announced by the Election Commission. Yesterday (Sunday), they declared the election dates, and today, the notification has been issued. The first phase of the election is on April 9. Filing of nominations will take place on the 23rd of this month, scrutiny will be on the 24th, and withdrawal of nominations on the 26th,” he said.

Venugopal added that after the completion of these formalities, candidates will have barely 11 days for campaigning.

“During that time, there are several festivals such as Good Friday and Easter. Because of this, candidates will effectively get only four to five days to campaign among the people,” he said.

He further questioned the urgency behind placing Kerala in the first phase of polling.

“If the Election Commission wanted to announce the elections early, it could have done so in February, as it did last year. The counting of votes is scheduled for May 4, so what was the urgency to include Kerala in the first phase along with Assam and the Union Territory of Puducherry?” he asked.

Venugopal also alleged that the Election Commission is gradually losing its credibility as a neutral institution. He said that despite these concerns, the Congress remains confident that the people of Kerala will support the party in the upcoming elections.

–IANS

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