EC official was called for meeting with PMO, not CEC: Law Ministry
The Hindu
It was to discuss several proposals on electoral reforms pending for long, it says
A day after a controversy erupted over the Election Commission of India being asked to attend a meeting with the Prime Minister’s Office, the Law Ministry on Saturday said the meeting in November was meant for the Secretary or representative of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and not the CEC himself.
The Ministry said several proposals of the ECI regarding electoral reforms had been pending for long and the CECs had written to the Law Minister several times since 2011 asking the matter to be considered.
“Legislative Department is the nodal Department regarding matters related to Election Commission and regular interaction takes place between officials of ECI and Legislative Department. Previously, several meetings were held by the Cabinet Secretary and the PMO regarding common electoral roll,” the Ministry said.
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Several principals of government and private schools in Delhi on Tuesday said the Directorate of Education (DoE) circular from a day earlier, directing schools to conduct classes in ‘hybrid’ mode, had caused confusion regarding day-to-day operations as they did not know how many students would return to school from Wednesday and how would teachers instruct in two modes — online and in person — at once. The DoE circular on Monday had also stated that the option to “exercise online mode of education, wherever available, shall vest with the students and their guardians”. Several schoolteachers also expressed confusion regarding the DoE order. A government schoolteacher said he was unsure of how to cope with the resumption of physical classes, given that the order directing government offices to ensure that 50% of the employees work from home is still in place. On Monday, the Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) had, on the orders of the Supreme Court, directed schools in Delhi-NCR to shift classes to the hybrid mode, following which the DoE had issued the circular. The court had urged the Centre’s pollution watchdog to consider restarting physical classes due to many students missing out on the mid-day meals and lacking the necessary means to attend classes online. The CAQM had, on November 20, asked schools in Delhi-NCR to shift to the online mode of teaching.
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