Tuesday, February 15 2005 13:46 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: The Election Commission (EC) has directed the Bihar chief electoral officer to remove all railway staff, who were earlier engaged for elections from poll duty to ensure that they do not influence polling to curry favour with Railway Minister Laloo Prasad, who is also Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president.

The EC has directed the state CEO to ensure that no railway officials were drafted for poll duty in the third phase of elections in 93 Assembly constituencies of Bihar on February 23, additional chief electoral officer S H Mintoo said in Patna today (Feb 15, 2005).

Following the EC directive, State Government employees would replace the railway staff who were earlier assigned to poll duty, he said.

According to State election office sources, a good number of railway officials had been drafted for poll duty as presiding officer or polling officers particularly in Saran, Vaishali and Gopalganj districts going to polls in the third phase.

In the last Parliamentary elections, on the orders of the EC no Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel were given poll duty in Nalanda Lok Sabha seat from where the then railway Minister Nitish Kumar was contesting.