Bike ban, tourist embargo at coastal spots in new Election Commission directives

THe Election direction of bharat (ECI) has prohibited the habituate of motorcycles in w Bengal between 6pm and 6am two days before every phase of polling, and ordered the evacuation of tourists and outsiders from the seaside resorts of Digha, Mandarmani, Tajpur, Udaipur and Shankarpur.Both orders are unprecedented in India’s electoral history.In a directive dated April 20, the state chief electoral officer banned motorcycle rides between 6 pm and 6 am with exemptions only for medical emergencies or family functions. Pillion riding was separately banned between 6 am and 6 pm, with limited exceptions for medical emergencies, family functions and essential requirements such as dropping or picking up school children. Both these restrictions will be in place from two days prior to each phase of elections — April 23 (Phase 1) and April 29 (Phase 2).The first set of restrictions came into effect on Tuesday.A complete ban has also been announced on using two-wheelers for election rallies.“In order to ensure free, fair, peaceful and violence-free elections-2026 in the state and to prevent any form of intimidation and source jamming, the restrictions on use of motorcycles are hereby imposed with immediate effect from Polling day-2 onward,” the directive said.This is the first time in West Bengal that ECI has issued such restrictions on motorcycle movement ahead of assembly polls. No such restriction existed in any of the other four regions that went to the polls this month. It was also not in place during the 2024 general elections or the 2021 assembly elections.Pillion riding was allowed on polling days between 6 am and 6 pm, strictly for the purpose of voting and other essential requirements. Any individual requiring an exemption from these restrictions must obtain written permission from the local police station, the state poll body said.The CEO stated that motorcycles with multiple riders, or groups of bikes, are frequently deployed as “instruments of intimidation and source jamming during elections”.“Political parties at times use motorcycles to transport cash or liquor through narrow lanes and bylanes that typically evade naka checkpoints which focus on four-wheelers on main roads. The restrictions are intended to eliminate this channel of voter inducement and ensure a violence-free polling environment across all 152 Phase 1 constituencies and more,” a senior official in the CEO’s office said.Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev criticised the restrictions, calling the poll body “completely clueless”.“The majority of the middle class uses motorcycles to travel — this decision will directly affect their livelihood and day-to-day working,” Dev said, adding that the order was particularly harsh on those whose income and mobility depend on two-wheelers.Gig workers and food delivery personnel in Kolkata expressed anxiety over the restrictions, fearing the order’s blanket nature could disrupt livelihoods during the period. App-based bike taxi services, including Rapido and Uber Bike, will also remain off roads.Sourav Mondal, a Zomato delivery partner in Kolkata, said: “We depend on daily orders for income. If movement is restricted or customers cannot stay in these areas, it directly affects our earnings. There is still confusion about whether we will be allowed to work freely.”Ritwick Chatterjee, a Swiggy delivery executive in the city, added: “We have not received clear instructions on whether delivery workers are exempt. The order does not mention us specifically, creating uncertainty about what is allowed.”A senior official in the local DEO office said, “Strict enforcement is being carried out on the ground, including public announcements and coordination with local police. All outsiders have been asked to vacate the area within the stipulated timeline to ensure a secure and disturbance-free polling process.”Tourists, outsiders ordered to vacateECI also ordered tourists and outsiders to vacate popular coastal destinations such as Digha, Mandarmani, Tajpur, Udaipur and Shankarpur by Tuesday evening until the conclusion of Phase 1 polling in Purba Medinipur district, according to senior officials in ECI and CEO. The poll body banned all political party workers and campaigners from staying in hotels and guest houses in these areas.Officials said that no resident of any outside district will be permitted to stay in hotels, guest houses or any accommodation in these tourist spots. Political party campaigners are separately and explicitly barred from staying in the area during this period. Violations will be treated as a punishable offence under Section 223 (disobedience to a public order) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).The tourist eviction order is first-of-its-kind issued by ECI during an assembly election cycle. CEO officials further added that “similar restrictions could be extended to other coastal or tourist areas in subsequent phases if the security situation warrants it.”The order is first-of-its-kind specifically in its application to ordinary civilians and tourists from outside the district — the MCC already mandates political functionaries to leave a constituency 48 hours before polling, but extending this to the general public staying in hotels and guest houses has no precedent.Following the notification from the DEO office, police stations covering Digha, Digha Mohana and the Mandarmani coastline began public announcements via loudspeaker from Monday night, asking tourists to leave these destinations by 5 pm on Tuesday.Following the notification, senior officials at the CEO’s office and the local DEO office confirmed that police stations covering Digha, Digha Mohana, and the Mandarmani coastline began public announcements via loudspeaker from Monday night, asking tourists to leave these destinations by 5 pm on Tuesday.All the tourist destinations covered under this order fall within the Ramnagar assembly constituency, which goes to polls in Phase 1 along with all other seats of Purba Medinipur district. Senior officials in the CEO’s office said that “the rationale behind asking even genuine tourists to leave is the apprehension that outsiders with intent to cause disturbance could enter the district under the cover of tourism and incite unrest during polling.”Senior officials in the ECI said that “the decision was taken entirely under the powers vested in the CEO and DEO offices,” adding that the DEO in particular has the authority to impose special clauses based on the ground situation in the constituency.Notably, both West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, which go to polls simultaneously on April 23, have significant coastlines. Despite this, no comparable restriction barring tourists and outsiders from coastal accommodations has been issued in Tamil Nadu or in any other poll-bound coastal constituency in the current election cycle.No such comparable order was issued for any other tourist destination within West Bengal, including hill stations in North Bengal such as Darjeeling and Kalimpong, which also fall within Phase 1 constituencies.The order is part of a broader enforcement sweep by ECI ahead of Phase 1, which covers 152 constituencies across North Bengal and several districts of South Bengal.ECI also suspended three executive magistrates posted with the flying squad in Bhabanipur — one of West Bengal’s most politically sensitive constituencies — for dereliction of duty. Bhabanipur, where chief minister Mamata Banerjee is facing BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari, goes to the polls on April 29.