New Delhi: Armed with legal opinion that it must have enforcement powers, the Election Commission today (May 12, 2004) said it would take up with the new Government the issue of proper "legislative support" for regulation of the exit polls.

"After the elections, we would like to tell the Government that they should consider a proper legislative support for this purpose," Chief Election Commissioner T S Krishna Murthy said in his first interview after completion of the four-phased Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in four States.

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He was replying to a question on the recent controversy on the issue of exit and opinion polls and surrogate advertisements on the electronic media and whether the Commission would seek an amendment to the law to overcome shortcomings in regulating them.

A visibly relaxed Murthy said the Commission had already received legal opinion which makes it clear that the panel must have proper enforcement powers before taking a view on it.

Asked if exit polls could have an effect on the electorate, he said the Commission on the basis of all-party meeting felt that the need for regulation and a limited ban because, if not anything else, at least some voters, especially uneducated, ones may get confused by these exit polls particularly, when there is a four to five-phase poll.