The Election Commission today refused to comment on allegations that the Delhi government had scrapped their ban on old vehicles as a political move, in order not to compromise votes in the forthcoming elections. Significantly, the Federation of Transport Unions Congress have threatened that the ruling party will lose 20 lakh votes if they push their decision to ban old commercial vehicles.

The Election Commission, in charge of policing the code of conduct of the political parties during elections, apparently finds nothing amiss in the decision of the Delhi government to backtrack on its seven-month-old decision to ban 15 year old vehicles by March, 1998, as one of its measures to control air pollution in Delhi, just 11 days before the city is going to the polls. On being questioned on their inaction, chief election commissioner M S Gill dismissed the issue saying, "Why are you disturbing Election Commission over trivial matters."

The "trivial matter" being questioned here was the health of Delhi’s 9 million people, who are forced to breathe polluted air and will have to continue to do so due to the shortsighted political ambitions of the Delhi state government. A study conducted by the Centre for Science and Environment recently (November 1997) had indicated that 10,000 people die prematurely because of air pollution in Delhi alone every year and 60 lakh people report ill due to pollution related illnesses.

CSE took up this issue up with the Election Commission after it became apparent that the Delhi Government was withdrawing their decision to appease a certain section of the electorate. The Chief Election Commissioner was requested to intervene immediately to take this matter up with the state government. According to the guidelines issued on the Model Code of Conduct by the Election Commission of India for Political Parties and candidates this year, "The party in power whether at the Centre or in the state or states concerned, shall ensure that no cause is given for any complaint that it has used its official position for the purposes of its election campaign."

Interestingly, the Federation of Transport Unions Congress is planning a stir tomorrow (February 11, 1998) as a pressure tactic 5 days before the elections to make sure that the government sticks to their promise of issuing fitness certificates after rigorous inspection instead of banning the vehicles. The promise was extracted from the government earlier, when the Federation held a chakka jam on 6 February, and the government gave in by saying that the ban would be replaced by a system of issuing fitness certificates to the old vehicles after rigorous inspection.

In a press statement issued by CSE in the last week of January, CSE director Anil Agarwal pointed out that "the imminent election has spirited away the political will to implement the decision," and had warned that the state government was likely to do a volte-face.

In order to register protest, CSE is organising a "Jam-Their-Phone-Lines To Be Heard" campaign on February 12, 1998, where volunteers will call the office of the Delhi Chief Minister through the day, to demand that he does not allow the political aspirations of his party take precedence over their health. CSE has also called upon Delhi’s citizens to take up this campaign, and call the Chief Minister, Sahib Singh Verma’s office when ever they are free and how ever many times they can on the 12th of this month, between 9 am - 5 pm, to express their outrage. The Chief Ministers numbers are : 2933161, 2940721, 2933770, 2933771. If they don’t get the Chief Minister, citizens are requested to leave a detailed message with his Personal Secretary.