A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Opposition had no “authority to question the Election Commission”, Congress leader P. Chidambaram hit back on Monday, wondering that if citizens could not question the panel, should they pray before it.
While Mr. Modi made the comment at a public gathering in Gujarat in response to Opposition criticism of the delay in calling the elections in the State, Mr. Chidamabaram tweeted, “If citizens cannot question the EC, please tell us who can? And what should citizens do, pray to the EC?”
For the past four days, the Congress and the BJP have been engaged in a war of words over the delay in announcing dates for the Gujarat elections. On October 12, the Election Commission announced the dates for Himachal Pradesh, but did not unveil the schedule for Gujarat. The Opposition alleged that the delay gave the ruling BJP an unfair advantage in Gujarat as the State government can freely announce sops with the model code of conduct not in force.
At a strategy meeting of Opposition parties, chaired by Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, the issue figured again.
At a press conference, Congress leader Manish Tewari said, “The EC shouldn’t be part of any BJP conspiracy.”
Last Friday, in a series of sarcastic tweets, Mr. Chidamabaram mocked the Commission by accusing the poll panel of going on an “extended holiday” and “authorising the Prime Minister to announce the dates”.
In an exclusive interview to The Hindu on Sunday, Chief Election Commissioner A.K. Joti said several factors determined their decision.