Ludhiana, Dec. 13 -- FIRs were recommended against 137 government employees, including 101 teachers, for skipping the mandatory election rehearsal scheduled on Thursday, officials said. The Zila Parishad and Block Samiti elections are to be held on Sunday.

The action was recommended by Samrala SDM Rajneesh Arora and Machhiwara Sahib returning officer-cum-regional transport officer Kuldeep Bawa, drawing criticism from educators, who claimed several teachers named in the list were simultaneously assigned multiple poll duties across different districts, making attendance not just difficult but practically impossible.

In a letter written to the Samrala DSP on Thursday, the Samrala SDM-cum-returning officer invoked the Punjab State Election ...