Lok Sabha polls: Nominations to commence in Punjab from May 7

The filing of nominations for the Lok Sabha elections is slated to start in Punjab from May 7. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has appointed general and police observers for 13 seats in Punjab to ensure peaceful, fair, and transparent elections. These officials will assume their responsibilities from May 14, a press release from the Punjab Information and Public Relations Department said.
Punjab Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sibin C said that 13 IAS officers from various states have been appointed as general observers, while seven IPS officers have been appointed as police observers. Their role is to ensure adherence to the rules and directives of the ECI during the elections, regarding the Model Code of Conduct.
Among the IAS officers, who have been appointed as general observers are K Mahesh (Batch 2009) for Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat, Siddharth Jain (2001) for Amritsar, Abhimanyu Kumar (2011) for Khadoor Sahib, J Meghanatha Reddy (2013) for Jalandhar, R Anandakumar (2003) for Hoshiarpur, Heera Lal (2010) for Anandpur Sahib, Divya Mittal (2013) for Ludhiana, Rakesh Shankar (2004) for Fatehgarh Sahib, Roohi Khan (2013) for Faridkot, Kapil Meena (2010) for Ferozepur, S Prabhakar (2009) for Bathinda, Shanavas S (2012) for Sangrur and Om Prakash Bakoria (2006) for Patiala Lok Sabha seat, the release said.
Similarly, police observers include IPS officers like Kushal Pal Singh (Batch 2014) for Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur Lok Sabha seats, Sweta Shrimali (2010) for Amritsar and Khadoor Sahib, Satish Kumar Gajbhiye (2002) for Jalandhar and Ludhiana, Sandeep Gajanan Diwan (2010) for Anandpur Sahib and Fatehgarh Sahib, B Shankar Jaiswal (2001) for Bathinda and Faridkot, AR Damodhar (2013) for Ferozepur and Amir Javed (2012) for Sangrur and Patiala Lok Sabha seats.
Notably, 15 serving IRS officers have already been appointed by ECI as Expenditure observers, the release mentioned.
In Punjab, voting for its 13 seats will take place in a single phase, with the seventh and final phase on June 1 seeing voting in Gurudaspur, Amritsar, Khadoor Sahib, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Nandpur Sahib, Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib, Faridkot, Firozpur, Bathinda, Sangrur, and Patiala constituencies