Election Commission team to assess situation in Mizoram ahead of Assembly elections

An Election Commission of India team is expected to arrive in poll-bound Mizoram on Tuesday to review the situation following the demand for the ouster of state's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) S B Shashank, official sources said.

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Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking immediate removal of Shashank as "people have lost faith in him". The chief minister also said that removal of Shashank is the only solution for smooth elections in the state. Elections to the 40-member Mizoram Assembly are scheduled for November 28.

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The team, comprising Jharkhand state CEO L Khiangte, Director of Election Commission Nikhil Kumar and Secretary, Election Commission, S B Joshi, is expected to reach the state capital on Tuesday afternoon.

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The three-member EC team will hold discussions with Chief Secretary Arvind Ray, other senior officials and leaders of civil societies to resolve the impasse, the sources said.

        

Demanding Shashank's removal, the NGO Coordination Committee, an umbrella organisation of major civil societies and student associations, began demonstration in front of the CEO's office from Tuesday morning.