Chief Election Commissioner James Michael Lyngdoh on Friday said it would not be possible to hold assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh in February/March since revision of electoral rolls would be over only by the end of January.
He told this to NDTV 24X7 after Governor Surjit Singh Barnala dissolved the assembly following a recommendation from Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu.
"The EC takes its own time and [holds elections] whenever it is ready," he told the channel.
"We have six months to do it after the dissolution of the assembly."
Asked if the state could face problems if the annual budget was not cleared by the end of March, he said, "That is their business."
The ruling Telugu Desam Party had on Thursday taken the first step towards early elections. At a party general body meeting, a resolution seeking a fresh mandate ahead of schedule was unanimously adopted.
The CM obviously wants to cash in on the sympathy wave in his favour following the October 1 naxalite attack on his convoy.
The resolution condemned the naxalites and Congress for hampering the government's efforts to take the state on the path of development.
It is also believed that Naidu does not want to take the risk of waiting through the summer, when another drought might wreck his party's chances of returning to power.
The assembly's term will end in September 2004.
With Inputs from PTI
