Bengal governor C.V. Ananda Bose on Saturday summoned the state election commissioner Rajiva Sinha, but the poll panel chief skipped the meeting citing he was busy with the scrutiny of nomination papers.

Sources aware of the development said that Sinha spoke to the governor over the phone and informed him that he was busy with the scrutiny of nomination papers and he can meet the governor any other day whenever he is asked to.

Senior bureaucrats said that the summons by the governor holds significance as the poll panel chief was called up a day after the governor visited Bhangar in South 24 Parganas where troubles broke out and at least two deaths were reported over filing nominations.

The governor had said that in Bhangar that the perpetrators of violence would be silenced permanently and people of the state have the right to exercise their right to vote without fearing anybody.

“In this backdrop, the summon to the poll panel chief was significant… The governor could have asked some uncomfortable questions to the poll panel chief,” said a source.

The governor, however, visited Canning in South 24 Parganas, another area where trouble broke out during the nomination filing process, later in the day and held a meeting with senior administrative officials of the district.

“The violence should die a silent death in Bengal,” the governor told the media persons after visiting Bijoyganj market in Canning which was the centre point of violence.

The state poll panel on the other hand was busy throughout the days as it had filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court against the Calcutta High Court’s order of deploying central forces in all the districts during the panchayat polls.

“As the matter has been challenged in the apex court, the poll panel did not sendany requisition for central forces on Saturday,” said a source.

The poll panel chief on Saturday asked all the districts to send the number of sensitive booths in their districts concerned by the end of the day.

“Though no requisition for central forces was sent, the number of sensitive booths will be required during the hearing in the Supreme Court. So, the poll panel is keeping itself ready to make its case stronger in the apex court,” said a poll panel source.

The state government sources claimed that they have secured the consent of three states to send their forces to Bengal for the rural polls.

“The state will have enough force to secure every booth premises. The state may not have problem in deploying central forces in sensitive booths which would be perhaps around 10 per cent,” a source said.